Freedom Boom
by RaceProUK
Summary: Lilac, Carol, and Milla are hanging out by the river in Dragon Valley when they discover a strange portal to another world…
1. The Portal

Deep within Dragon Valley, among the lush greenery along the river, three close friends are enjoying the warm sunny weather, thankful there's no‑one around to disturb them. While Carol lounges on the bank basking in the gentle warmth of the sun, Lilac and Milla swim and play in the river itself.

"Come and play with us, Carol!" Milla chirps, waving to the wildcat.

"No thanks," Carol replies, half asleep.

"Aw, come on! It's fun!" Milla encourages.

"Maybe later," Carol sighs, resettling herself.

"Lilac, tell Carol she's being‑" Milla begins, turning to Lilac, pausing when she realises the dragon‑girl has disappeared. "Lilac?"

Suddenly, Lilac bursts out of the water, her Dragon Boost sucking up an angled column. Once the Boost ends, the column breaks over both Milla and Carol, soaking them both.

"Milla's right you know," Lilac giggles, landing softly beside the nonplussed wildcat.

Carol simply fixes the impish dragon with a 'did you have to?' look.

Milla bounds out of the water and shakes herself dry, spraying both her friends in the process. "You're not scared of water, are you?" she asks Carol.

"Me? Scared? Nah!" Carol replies defiantly.

"Then come and swim!" Milla asks once more, getting down on all‑fours and adopting her cutest expression.

"There's no way to resist that look, is there?" Carol smiles, sliding off her deck chair. As she does so, her ears pick up a rustling in the bushes. "Can you hear something?" she asks, turning towards the direction of the sound.

Milla lifts her ears. "I can't‑ I can now."

As Milla finishes her sentence, the robot bursts out of the bushes. Standing about two feet tall, with a red shell casing, a grey face, yellow claws, and a single wheel underneath, the robot observes the trio through emotionless eyes.

"That doesn't _look_ like one of Brevon's," Lilac observes, involuntarily taking hold of a hair whip. "Maybe we should‑"

Without warning, the robot charges directly towards the group. Milla summons a Phantom Block, lowering it to form a shield, while Lilac and Carol crouch either side of the puppy, ready to attack. When the robot is close enough, Milla unleashes the pent‑up energy in a powerful jade blast, reducing the robot to a smouldering wreck, the recoil knocking her back about a foot.

"Well, that was easy!" Carol remarks, relaxing.

"Yeah, but normally, one of those weird black flying things comes out," Lilac observes. "There wasn't one in this robot though."

Carol walks up to the wreckage, and picks up a small piece of shattered casing. "The metal's not the same as Brevon's bots either," she concludes, turning the piece over in her hands.

"Is it from the Red Scarves?" Milla asks.

"It's not a Red Scarves design," Lilac explains. "It's not from any of the three kingdoms either."

"Then where _is_ it from?" Carol asks.

"I don't know," Lilac answers. "But we should find out, just in case there's more, and they start causing trouble," she adds, heading towards the bushes where the robot originated.

"She's being 'Little Miss Heropants' again," Carol sighs. "Come on Milla."

Lilac pushes deeper into the bushes, Carol and Milla following. After a few moments, they come across a strange ovoid phenomenon: a ring of purple fire and electricity forms the edge, and within, a maelstrom of colour fills the space.

"What is that?" Milla gasps, cowering in the bushes, peeking out at the strange portal.

Before the others can answer, a hornet‑like robot flies through, Carol swiftly dispatching it with a Wild Claw.

"Where these strange robots are coming from," Lilac concludes.

Slowly, the dragoness reaches out to touch the portal, ready to pull back if she gets hurt. Without warning, she's pulled through completely.

" _Lilac!_ " Carol and Milla cry in unison.

After a few tense moments, with Lilac not returning, Carol moves towards the portal.

"What are you doing?" Milla asks, her voice shaky.

"My best friend just got pulled Ancients‑know‑where, and I'm gonna go and get her back!" Carol declares.

The instant she touches the portal, Carol is also pulled through.

" _Carol!_ " Milla cries.

After waiting a few moments, and with no sign of either wildcat or dragoness, Milla edges closer to the portal. When close enough, she reaches out to touch it: the instant she makes contact, she too is pulled through the portal.

A moment later, the portal collapses with a pop.


	2. Speedsters Meet

"Give it up, Eggface!"

"That shtick is getting old, y'know!"

Dr Eggman banks hard, entering the chasm, Sonic following right behind.

"Luring me to another of your half‑baked bots?" Sonic asks cheekily.

"I've really got to vary my strategies," Eggman sighs to himself.

Suddenly, the chasm ends at the top of a deep crater, Eggman flying across to the other side.

"Now, prepare to face‑" Eggman begins, turning around, pausing when he sees no sign of Sonic. "What‽ Where'd he go‽ Doesn't he know it's bad manners not to face your sworn enemy in battle? And I went through all this effort too!"

* * *

A mile back in the canyon, Sonic stirs to consciousness. "Ugh… what hit me?" Picking himself up groggily, he looks around to get his bearings. Eventually, he notices an unfamiliar purple girl lying unconscious several feet away, wearing a blue sleeveless jacket and matching shorts, boots, and gloves. Worried she may be hurt, Sonic dashes over and checks for her pulse.

"Carol?" Lilac mumbles, stirring awake at the contact. Opening her eyes, she sees the blue hedgehog looming over her. "You're not Carol," she continues. Suddenly, she leaps up, landing in a fighting pose several feet from Sonic. "Where's Carol?" she demands.

"Whoa, easy!" Sonic holds his hands up to show he means no harm. "If you're looking for someone, I'll help you."

"Who are you?" Lilac demands, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"You're not from around here, are you?"

"I‑" Lilac begins, pausing when she realises she's not where she was before. "Wait… This isn't Dragon Valley! Where am I?"

"Bygone Island."

"Never heard of it."

"Well, you're right in the middle of it." Sonic pauses a moment. "Where's Dragon Valley?"

"Between Shang Mu and Shang Tu."

"Never heard of those places: only place for miles around is the Village."

Lilac thinks for a moment. "Then… I'm not on Avalice anymore." The realisation hits her hard, and she drops her guard. A moment later, she realises something. "You're not wearing pants."

"I never do."

"Isn't that‑"

"Normal? Yes."

"Yet you wear a scarf."

"Yep."

"A brown one."

"Yep."

"Why?"

"I like it."

"Hm." Lilac sits down, struggling to comprehend what's going on. "Last thing I remember, we were attacked by this one‑wheeled robot with a red shell‑"

"A Motobug."

Lilac leaps back to her feet, ready to fight. "Did you send it to my world?"

Sonic holds his hands up again. "What? No! I'd never even _heard_ of your world till just now!"

"Then where did the robot come from?"

"It's one of Dr Eggman's," Sonic explains. "He builds loads of them, then sends them to destroy me and my friends. And we send them packing every time," he finishes smugly.

Lilac partially relaxes. "Sounds like he does that a lot."

"Eh, it's a way to pass the time." Sonic looks around him. "Oh yeah, I was chasing him… eh, no use worrying about it now: he'll have already scarpered."

"You never answered my question."

"What question?"

"Who are you?"

"Sonic The Hedgehog!"

"Glad to‑ Your middle name is 'The'?"

"Yes."

"Oh." _Weird._ "I'm Sash Lilac."

"Good to meet you, Sash. Wanna go grab a Mehburger?"

"A what? Oh, yeah, I guess I should have something to eat. And please, call me Lilac."

"Lilac it is then. I'll go slow so you can keep up."

Lilac's mood shifts from wary to confident. "I'm pretty fast: I'm fairly sure I can outrun you."

"Wanna bet?" Sonic smirks.

Lilac smiles at the prospect of a race. "Only Carol can beat me, and only when she uses her motorcycle. Even then, it's far from guaranteed."

"Well, if you insist on a race, I'm not going to turn it down. The route to the Village is easy. Head out the chasm, hang a left, and go straight: you can't miss it!"

"I'll wait for you there!" Lilac boasts, quickly charging a Dragon Boost, and running at full speed out of the chasm, turning left as instructed. _He wasn't ready for‑_

"Going before the signal?" Sonic sighs.

Lilac turns to see Sonic running alongside her. Backwards. "What? How are you keeping up?"

With a chuckle, Sonic turns to face forwards. He then accelerates to top speed, pulling away from Lilac as if she's standing still, buffeting the dragoness with the shockwave of his sonic boom.

"And I thought _I_ was fast," she breathes in awe.


	3. Companions Cross

As Sonic and Lilac race towards the Village, Tails arrives at his workshop, and parks his plane inside. Leaping out and humming a little ditty, he heads towards the workbench to fetch a few tools, returning to the plane to perform some basic maintenance. Soon, he's so lost in his work, he barely notices the sound of a purple portal opening behind him. The sound of someone screaming as they fly through it, and the crash as they land less than a second later, does attract his attention. However, he turns a little late to see the portal, as it has already collapsed.

"Sonic?" Tails asks. "Is that you?"

There is no reply.

Leaving his tools in the cockpit, Tails drops to the floor, and heads over to where the crash came from. Among the remains of a shelving unit, he is surprised to see a two‑tone green wildcat stiffly extracting herself from the wreckage.

"Lilac?" Carol calls. "Are you there?"

"Are you OK?" Tails asks. "Do you need assistance?"

Carol turns to the voice. At the sight of the twin‑tailed fox, she leaps to her feet, claws out, ready to fight. "Who are you, buddy?" she demands. "Where am I? Tell me now!"

"Tails," Tails replies, extending a hand that Carol doesn't take. "And you're in my workshop."

"Where's Lilac?"

"Who?"

"Don't play games with me, buddy! I know you took her!"

"But I've never met her!"

"And you sent that robot after us!"

"Robot?"

"One wheel, red casing‑"

"Oh! That's not mine, it's one of Eggman's!"

Carol drops her guard slightly. "It's not yours then?"

"No."

"And Lilac's not here?"

"Like I said, I've never met her."

"Then I'm gonna go find her," Carol declares, retracting her claws and making her way to the door.

"I've got a friend who can help!" Tails offers.

Carol pauses, suspicious. "Who?"

Tails activates his wrist communicator. "Blue Leader, this is Yellow Sky. Come in, Blue Leader."

"What's up Tails?" Sonic replies, his voice a little distorted by the radio.

"This guy just appeared in my workshop, looking for someone called Lilac."

"Lilac? Oh, she ran into me while I was chasing Eggbelly."

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah, and so's she. By the way, we're racing to Mehburger! Well, I say we're racing: I'm already here."

"We'll meet you there then! Yellow Sky out!" Tails turns off his communicator. "I'll take you over‑" he begins, pausing when he sees Carol's look of disappointment. "What did I say?"

"I'm a girl," Carol sighs. " _Carol_ the Wildcat."

"Sorry, I didn't… I mean… We should probably get to Mehburger."

Carol doesn't respond: she simply waits for Tails to lead the way.

* * *

Sonic turns off his communicator and sits back, waiting for his opponent to arrive. He doesn't have to wait long: five minutes later, she slides to a halt at the table.

"How long have you been here?" Lilac asks, taking a seat.

"About ten minutes," Sonic boasts. "My buddy just called: seems some guy appeared in his workshop, looking for you."

"A guy?"

"That's what Tails said."

Lilac takes a seat, confused. "Don't know any guys that would be looking for me. Unless you actually mean‑"

" _Lilac!_ " The distant call catches Lilac's attention immediately: she turns to see Carol sprinting to her across the village square at top speed.

" _Carol!_ " Lilac cries. Knocking her chair over as she stands, she dashes to greet her friend with a warm sisterly hug. "Where's Milla?" she asks as the hug breaks.

"No idea," Carol answers.

"We should go look for‑" Lilac begins.

Before she can finish, a pink hedgehog in a short red dress and purple thigh‑length socks sprints past them and skids to a halt at the table where Sonic and Tails are waiting.

"Sticks is going crazy again," Amy Rose sighs, exasperated.

"Going?" Tails quips.

"Point taken," Amy replies. "Who are these two?" she asks, turning to Lilac and Carol.

"Lilac and Carol," Sonic answers, pointing to each in turn. "Lilac ran into me in the chasm, and Carol appeared in Tails' workshop."

Amy extends a hand. "Pleasure to meet you: I'm Amy Rose."

Lilac shakes Amy's offered hand, but Carol goes for a fist‑bump. This puzzles Amy slightly, but she returns the fist‑bump anyway.

"So, what's today's breed of crazy?" Tails asks.

Amy gives the fox a mildly disapproving look. "She's claiming to have captured an alien," she explains. "I kept trying to explain the poor thing's just a puppy who probably just got herself lost."

Lilac and Carol exchange concerned looks.

"Milla?" Carol suspects.

"Milla," Lilac agrees

"We'd better get over there," Sonic sighs.

"We'll come too," Lilac adds.


	4. A Special Kind of Crazy

"I don't want to hurt you!" Milla cries, deflecting Sticks' boomerang with her shield.

"You can't fool me!" Sticks counters as she catches the boomerang. "I know you're an alien! Now tell me why you're here! Are you invading? Will you turn us into slaves and force us to build giant mud sculptures of fruit baskets?"

Before Milla can respond, her ears pick up the sound of a blue streak approaching the quarrelling duo at high speed. Already scared by the crazy badger attacking her, Milla cowers further behind her shield.

Sonic slides to a halt between the two of them. "Sticks, what are you doing?"

"Defending us from the alien invasion!" Sticks explains.

"What alien invasion?"

" _Milla!_ " Lilac and Carol cry in unison as they arrive on the scene.

Recognising the familiar voices, Milla dares to look over her shield, relaxing the instant she sees her friends sprinting to her. Relieved, she drops her shield and embraces her friends in a group hug.

" _AHH! More of them! No‑one is safe!_ " Sticks cries as she dashes into her burrow, locking the door securely.

Sonic facepalms. "Sticks, there's no alien invasion, they're just lost," he sighs.

"Let me talk to her," Amy offers, arriving on the scene with Tails following.

"Be my guest," Sonic accepts. "Sorry about that," he apologises to Milla. "Sticks is…"

"Crazy and paranoid," Tails finishes.

"Yeah, that," Sonic confirms.

"That's no excuse for scaring her!" Lilac protests angrily.

Sonic raises his hands in a 'calm‑down' gesture. "Chill: we've got it."

"It's OK, Lilac," Milla adds. "She didn't hurt me, and I didn't hurt her."

"But‑" Lilac begins to protest.

"Compared to how scared I was facing Brevon, this was nothing," Milla interrupts.

"I'm glad you're OK," Lilac sighs in relief.

"Guys, it's gonna be a while before I can coax her out again," Amy sighs, rejoining the group.

"Eh, just leave her to it," Sonic dismisses. "When the world doesn't end, she'll come out."

Amy shakes her head disapprovingly and returns to trying to calm Sticks down.

"Is this how things are normally?" Carol asks.

"No, but it's close," Tails sighs.

"Let's get back to the Village: I could really go for a chilidog," Sonic suggests. "Fancy a rematch, Lilac?"

"Sure, why not?" Lilac replies. Again, she Dragon Boosts to top speed before Sonic can react. A moment later, Sonic sets off in pursuit.

"Typical," Carol and Tails quip simultaneously. Surprised, they exchange bemused looks, then burst out laughing.

" _Then stay in there!_ " Amy shouts, having finally lost patience with Sticks. "Where's Sonic and Lilac?" she asks as she rejoins the others.

"Having another race," Tails explains.

"Lilac will win!" Carol claims confidently.

"You're not from round here, are you?" Amy smiles in amusement.

"No‑one's faster than Lilac!" Carol remains confident.

"Yep, definitely not from round here!" Amy chuckles. "Come on, let's catch up to them."

* * *

Back at Mehburger, Sonic is again waiting for Lilac to catch up. A minute later, she arrives.

"How… How can you run so _fast?_ " Lilac asks, taking a seat.

Sonic thinks about it for a moment. "No idea: I just can."

"That's twice you've blasted past me at top speed as if I'm standing still!"

"You're the one who wanted to race," Sonic remind cheekily.

"Only because I expected to win," Lilac admits.

A few moments later, the others arrive. Tails, Carol, and Milla join Sonic and Lilac at the table, while Amy goes to order the food.

"Who won?" Carol asks.

"He did," Lilac sighs. "Again."

"How‽" Carol gasps. "You're the fastest person I know!"

"Tails, remind me: how far is it to Hidden Meadows?" Sonic interrupts.

"About four days' hike, there and back," Tails answers.

Sonic stands and runs off at top speed, returning just seconds later with a mug full of gumtree berries. "They're from Hidden Meadows," he explains, retaking his seat.

" _That's_ how he beat me twice," Lilac confirms.

Carol simply sits there, totally dumbfounded.

"Showing off again?" Amy asks Sonic, joining the group and placing the tray of food in the middle of the table before taking her seat.

"Just a demonstration," Sonic shrugs.

"So, what brings you to Bygone Island?" Amy asks Lilac, Carol, and Milla as everyone tucks into their meals.

"It was involuntary," Lilac sighs. "We were hanging out by the river in Dragon Valley, when a… Motobug was it?" Sonic nods. "When one of them came out of the bushes and attacked us," Lilac continues.

"I smashed it!" Milla interjects.

"But when we looked at the wreckage, we realised it wasn't one of Brevon's," Lilac continues, involuntarily grabbing a hair whip.

"I take it Brevon isn't a nice person," Amy concludes, noticing Lilac's post‑traumatic tic.

" _That's_ an understatement," Carol confirms darkly.

"We decided to see if we could find where the robot came from‑" Lilac continues.

"You mean _you_ did, Little Miss Heropants!" Carol teases.

"Oh, is that right, tail?" Lilac retorts playfully. "Anyway, we found this portal, and we realised that's where the Motobug came from when a hornet‑like robot came through‑"

"A Bee‑Bot," Tails confirms.

"Which I smashed!" Carol adds.

"Concerned even more would come through, I moved closer," Lilac continues. "Next thing I know, I'm waking up in an unfamiliar chasm with Sonic checking my pulse."

"When Lilac didn't come back, I decided to follow and bail her out of the trouble she'd inevitably get into," Carol continues. "So, I moved closer, and ended up under the remains of Tails' shelving."

"And I ended up in one of the crazy girl's traps," Milla finishes. "I broke free, and that's when she started attacking."

"How did you break free?" Tails asks.

"I used one of these," Milla explains, summoning a Phantom Block and placing it on the table.

Sonic, Tails, and Amy stare at it, utterly bewildered.

"Did I do something wrong?" Milla asks, just about keeping a lid on her amusement at the reaction she received.

Lilac and Carol look at each other, then burst out laughing, Milla joining in a moment later.


	5. Science Stuff

Tails is the first to return to reality. "How do you do that?" he asks Milla, his tone full of awe and wonder.

"I don't know," Milla shrugs. "I've been able to do it forever, I think."

"She can also create huge blasts of energy that smash things!" Carol adds enthusiastically, causing Milla to blush.

"This is going to sound crazy, but… can I study you?" Tails asks.

"What do you mean, 'study'?" Lilac asks, her tone guarded.

"I want to observe how she creates those blocks," Tails explains. "If I can figure out her secret, I might be able to create a new weapon to fight Eggman!"

"Like that laser‑guided unbolteriser that caused a landslide that nearly buried us?" Amy's tone is friendly and mildly teasing, but there is a hint of seriousness underneath.

"…OK, I'll make sure I test it properly first," Tails sighs.

* * *

After lunch, the gang retires to Tails' workshop. While Lilac, Carol, and Amy chat outside, Tails is studying Milla's abilities inside, and Sonic has gone to fetch Knuckles.

"Hold it…" Tails instructs Milla, who is holding one of her Phantom Blocks in front of her, charged, ready to unleash the Super Shield Blast.

"I… can't… hold… it… much… longer!" Milla squeaks as the strain of holding the charge for so long begins to take its toll.

"Just one more second… now!" Tails commands.

Milla unleashes the pent‑up blast, shifting backwards a foot or so from the recoil.

"Fascinating!" Tails exclaims, analysing the results coming from his measuring equipment. "So much energy, of a type I've never seen before!"

"Can we take a break?" Milla asks, panting slightly.

"Huh? Oh, of course, yes!" Tails answers. "There's a chair around here somewhere…"

Milla spots a chair next to a workbench, which she retrieves and places next to the table with Tails' measuring equipment. "Why do you have two tails?" she asks as she sits down.

"Y'know, that's a good question," Tails explains while he taps away on his computer. "I was born with two tails, and it's why everyone calls me Tails, but I've never figured out _why_ I have two."

"Can I feel them?"

"Huh?"

"Never mind…"

"I didn't mean… You can feel them if you want, but they're just tails."

Milla stands and moves behind Tails, feeling each tail in turn. "They're so fluffy! Can you do tricks with them?"

"I can fly."

"Foxes can't fly!" Milla giggles.

"Oh really?" Tails counters. "Stand back!"

As Milla stands back, Tails moves away from the table. Twisting his tails around each other, he starts to spin them like helicopter blades. A second later, he lifts off the ground. "See?"

"How high can you go?" Milla asks, awed by the sight of the hovering fox.

"As high as I like!" Tails boasts.

"Can you get higher than me?" Milla giggles.

At the peak of her jump, Milla flaps her ears to gain extra height, Tails climbing alongside her. Once Milla gets to four times her jump height, she tires and falls to the floor again, landing on all fours, Tails hovering just above where Milla peaked.

"Impressive!" Tails compliments, slowly dropping back to the floor.

"I want to fly higher, but I can't," Milla reveals, her tone one of sadness.

"I get tired eventually too," Tails admits.

"Can you teach me to fly as high as you do?"

"I'm afraid not," Tails sighs. "You only have one tail."

"Could you make me another one?"

"Not one that would help you fly like I do. But I guess I could‑"

The conversation is interrupted by an urgent beep from Tails' computer.

"Let's see what we have then," Tails mutters as he seats himself in front of the screen and taps away at the keyboard for a few seconds. "Well, this is unexpected."

"Anything wrong?" Milla asks, a little concerned.

"No," Tails answers. "It's just my equipment can't make any sense of the sort of energy you command so easily."

"Sorry," Milla mumbles.

"It's not your fault," Tails assures. "I'll start an overnight analysis: that should be more successful. Once that's running, we'll go join the others."

* * *

Meanwhile, deep within Eggman's lair, the doctor himself is spying on his adversaries, his spy drone hovering in the rafters of Tails' workshop.

"Interesting," Eggman muses as he watches Tails and Milla head outside. "If I could harness that puppy's abilities, I will finally be able to destroy that pesky hedgehog! Orbot! Cubot! Is my latest creation ready yet?"

"Yes sir!" Orbot confirms as he and Cubot hold up a red flag with a black saltire and a yellow Eggman logo in the centre. "The new fortress flag design has come out fantastically!"

"And it don't look too bad neither!" Cubot adds.

"Not that creation, tin‑brains! The robot!" Eggman chides.

"Which one, sir?" Orbot inquires.

"Never mind, I'll go check myself," Eggman sighs, making his way out of the room. "Sometimes I wonder why I even built those dunderheads…"

* * *

Deep within the fortress's manufactory, Eggman approaches the bay his latest creation is being built in. After typing in a few commands at the bay's console, the screen scrolls a list of diagnostics and status reports. "Ah, it's coming along nicely! Lasers, grenade launchers, six‑disc auto‑changer… no cappuccino machine? How am I meant to conquer the world and crush my enemies without a good cup of coffee?"

"May I recommend a slushie machine instead, sir?" Orbot interjects.

"What do you think I am, eight?" Eggman retorts. "Though that does sound good," he muses a few moments later. "Glad I thought of it!" A few more taps at the console. "There! Now I'll be cool and refreshed while destroying my enemies!"


	6. Evening on the Beach

As the evening begins, Tails and the girls relocate to the beach. Sonic and Knuckles join them just in time for dinner, during which Knuckles is brought up to speed: it takes a few tries, but eventually he understands what's going on. Or a somewhat streamlined version, at least. After dinner, Sonic and Knuckles decide to introduce Lilac, Carol, and Milla to a game they call 'Coconut Hurl'. Once the rules are covered, it is time to decide on teams: Sonic and Knuckles team up, as do Carol and Milla. Lilac however elects to compete solo: when asked why, she simply responds "You'll see…"

With the teams decided, the tree selected, Tails furnished with a microphone (a pinecone on a stick), and Amy having found a position to watch that won't result in a coconut landing on her head again, the game can begin.

"Hello and welcome to a special edition of 'Coconut Hurl'!" Tails opens, speaking to an imaginary TV camera. "Defending champions Knuckles and Sonic have been challenged by new arrivals Carol and Milla, and we have a wildcard entry: Lilac is competing solo! How will she do? Only one way to find out! First up to the mark: the defending "

Sonic gets into position as Knuckles limbers up. Once ready, Knuckles lifts Sonic by his quills and starts to spin like a top, spinning faster and faster until they reach top speed. Suddenly, Knuckles lets go. Sonic flies headfirst into the tree, bouncing off and landing several feet away.

"And a good effort by the defending champions with three!" Tails announces as the coconuts land. "Next up, Carol and Milla!"

"Do I have to use my head for this?" Milla asks as she moves into position.

"Those two only use their heads because there's nothing in them," Amy quips.

"Just raise a shield," Carol suggests, finishing her warmup.

"OK," Milla agrees, sounding a little nervous.

Carol lifts Milla by her jacket and begins her spin, her ninja training making it easier than she originally thought it would be. After building up enough speed, Carol lets go: Milla flies to the tree at a slight angle, striking a heavy glancing blow via her shield, and landing several feet away in a roll.

"Ooh, an unfortunate result," Tails comments as the sole coconut lands. "They'll have to do a lot better on their next attempt if they hope to defeat the champions. But before that, our wildcard Lilac is up!"

Lilac takes her position, then curls up and charges a Dragon Boost, unleashing it directly at the tree. She bounces hard off the trunk, landing gracefully just a few feet away. When no coconuts drop, Lilac looks up, curious and a little disappointed. Suddenly, every coconut still in the tree falls directly on top of her: yelping in surprise, Lilac ends up on her back, half‑buried by coconuts.

"And _that's_ why I'm standing over here!" Amy quips, unable to supress a laugh.

" _Unbelievable!_ " Tails exclaims. "Lilac has dislodged _all the remaining coconuts!_ "

"Does that mean I win?" Lilac asks, a little dazed.

* * *

Sometime later, once the sun has set, the two groups of friends relax on the beach to stargaze. Lilac had recovered from the coconut assault within a few minutes, and is now sporting a few purple sports tape bandages courtesy of Amy.

"You girls are in luck!" Tails informs Lilac, Carol, and Milla. "Tonight, there's gonna be meteor shower!"

"Cool!" Carol exclaims.

As if on cue, the meteor shower starts, brilliant multi‑coloured streaks of incandescence slicing through the sky in droves.

"So _pretty!_ " Milla gasps.

"I wonder if one will land near us," Carol muses.

"Ugh, I hope not," Sonic replies. "Last time one of those coloured meteors landed on the island, my mind got switched with Eggbelly's. Don't wanna do that again."

"What if only the purple ones do that?" Tails asks. "The other colours might have different effects!"

"If one lands, _you_ can call 'dibs'," Sonic assures.

"I intend to!" Tails confirms. "Does Avalice have anything like this?" he asks a few moments later.

"The occasional meteor shower, yes, but nothing like this," Lilac confirms, her tone a little melancholic.

"Something wrong?" Amy asks, concerned.

"No, it's just…" Lilac begins, sighing deeply. "I guess I'm just a little homesick: this is the first time we've been off Avalice. Well, technically the second, though the first time we didn't even get to orbit, so I guess it doesn't really count."

"I thought you wanted to see other worlds?" Carol asks. "You said so on Zao's airship!"

"I do, and I'm having fun here," Lilac assures. "It's just, I'm looking up at the sky and _not_ seeing the Kingdom Stone…"

"The Kingdom Stone?" Amy inquires.

"The source of all the energy that powers civilisation on Avalice," Lilac explains. "My distant ancestors made it sometime after crash‑landing on our planet. When they realised they couldn't repair their ship, they used their technology to fuel the development of primitive Avalician society, eventually leading to the creation of the three cities Shang Mu, Shang Tu, and Shuigang."

"If it's a stone, how come it's in the sky?" Knuckles asks.

"It used to be a stone before Brevon got his hands on it," Lilac explains, instinctively reaching for a hair whip. "When his Dreadnought exploded, the Stone was still on board: we thought it was lost forever. But somehow it survived, and now it's a swirling vortex in the sky."

"But you still call it the Kingdom Stone?" Amy asks.

"No‑one's thought of a better name yet," Lilac shrugs.

"How about the 'Kingdom Swirl'?" Knuckles suggests.

"Sounds like a type of ice cream," Milla idly comments. For a moment, the others stay silent before they all burst out laughing, Milla included.


	7. Scarves of a Different Hue

Back on Avalice, a fiery orange vixen leads her silver‑furred boyfriend through the midnight streets of Shang Mu. Sticking to the shadows, they sprint point‑to‑point, their dark cloaks hiding their identities.

"How are we going to know when we've found one?" the vixen whispers as she and the hare pause in an alleyway to wait for a wave of traffic to go past.

"Spade didn't give me much of a description," the hare answers, "but he did say we'd know as soon as we see one."

"They could appear anywhere. Why are we looking in Shang Mu?"

"Because that's what we were assigned."

"Why did I agree to this?" the vixen sighs. "I could've spent this time getting to know my parents…"

"Would they be disappointed you chose a mission over a quiet night at home?"

The vixen pauses a moment. "You're right," she sighs. "I mean, I've only known them about a week, but I can already tell you mother would say 'There's no stopping you, is there? And quite right too!', and father would say 'You really are your mother's daughter!'" The vixen smiles contently under her hood.

"Looks like the traffic's clearing," the hare observes. "We'll get a gap in‑"

"Why are we sneaking around anyway?" the vixen asks suddenly. "We're not doing anything illegal tonight."

"I was following your lead," the hare explains.

"You'd follow me into the maw of a Mantalith, wouldn't you?" the vixen chuckles, removing her maroon cloak to reveal a black halterneck crop top, navy clue capris, and pink‑tipped scarlet hair cut into a striated bob.

"Someone's got to keep you out of trouble," the hare quips, removing his grey cloak. His silver fur contrasts with the maroon vest, forest green trousers, and jet black crew cut hair. Around his neck is a vivid red infinity scarf, outwardly identical to the one the vixen is wearing.

"Pity you do such a bad job of it," the vixen teases, casually leading the hare back out to the street.

The young couple walks the streets for another hour. Just as they begin to think their search is in vain, they spot a red spiky crab‑like robot scuttling out of an alleyway.

"Finally, a chance of some action!" the vixen chimes, drawing her nunchaku.

"Hold on, let's not be too hasty," the hare cautions.

"It's just one of Brevon's robots," the vixen remarks. "Thanks to that 'Brevon Law' Zao pushed through City Hall, smashing that could net us a reward instead of gaol time."

"It doesn't _look_ like a Brevon design," the hare cautions.

"Don't care: gonna smash it anyway," the vixen declares.

Before the hare can argue, the vixen sprints at the crab‑bot. The robot detects the incoming threat and counter‑attacks, but it can't outsmart the vixen. Within seconds, she's outflanked the robot and smashed into its casing, disabling it: the crab‑bot dies in a shower of sparks.

"Happy now?" the hare teases as he joins his girlfriend.

"One's not enough," the vixen sighs. "Does he have any buddies?"

The hare points at a nearby alleyway. "In front of that that purple portal over there."

A short way down the alleyway, an ovoid ring of purple fire and electricity surrounding a maelstrom of colour can be seen. And at the entrance to the alleyway, four more crab‑bots.

The vixen licks her lips in anticipation of the fight. "Ah, more victims!"

Breaking into a run, the vixen charges the crab‑bots: the robots charge in response, meeting the vixen midway. The vixen dances around the robots, toying with them for a minute or so before dispatching them much as she did with the first.

"Now you're done dancing, shall we check out the portal?" the hare teases, joining the vixen amid the pile of scrap metal.

"I was hoping four would prove a better match," the vixen sighs. "Let's check out this portal."

A few moments later, the vixen and the hare are standing in front of the portal, just within arm's reach.

"Fascinating!" the hare remarks. "I wonder where it leads?"

"Let's find out!" the vixen declares. Taking the hare's hand in hers, she steps forward and touches the portal: as soon as she does so, both she and the hare are pulled through.

A moment later, the portal disappears with a pop.

* * *

In Eggman's lab, a purple portal appears just long enough for the vixen and the hare to fly out of it before disappearing with a pop. The vixen lands first, the hare landing on top of her: together, they slide into the wall at the far end of the lab. A moment later, one of the fortress's defence systems auto‑activates: a blue force‑field surrounds the vixen and the hare, lifting them together six feet from the ground.

"Well, you've done it again," the hare teases, rolling off the vixen onto his back.

"Ah, so I have," the vixen remarks, rolling over into a more comfortable position. "Why did you let me touch the portal?"

The hare doesn't respond: he simply smiles in amusement, settling down to sleep.

* * *

Early the following morning, the vixen and the hare awake to find themselves face‑to‑face with Dr Eggman, who is flanked by his lackbots, Cubot and Orbot.

"So, you two think you can just sneak into my fortress?" Eggman asks. "Did that blue pineapple put you up to this?"

"Blue pineapple?" the hare asks.

"Sonic, of course!" Eggman answers gruffly.

The vixen and the hare share a look of confusion. "Never heard of him," the hare replies a moment later.

"What do you mean, you've never heard of him?" demands Eggman. "Everyone's heard of Sonic, the interfering do‑gooder!"

"Ugh, don't get me started on interfering do‑gooders," the vixen snorts.

"So, you _do_ know Sonic!" Eggman asserts.

"Who on Avalice is this 'Sonic'?" the vixen hisses. "I'm talking about Miss Goody‑Blue‑Boots!"

"Who?" Eggman asks.

"Sash Lilac, one of the 'saviours of Avalice', of course!" the vixen spits.

"Who? Also, what? And where?"

"OK, someone better start explaining what's going on before I lose my temper and hurt people," the vixen growls.

"Hmm…" the hare muses. After a few moment's thought, he mutters "Ah."

"'Ah' what?" the vixen presses.

"Inter‑dimensional travel," the hare explains. "That portal must have been a gateway to a parallel universe."

"What? Wait, does that mean we're not on Avalice anymore?" the vixen asks, no longer growling.

"It certainly appears that way," the hare confirms.

"Huh," the vixen remarks. "I have one more question," she continues, turning to Eggman. "Let us down."

"That's not a question, but OK," Eggman agrees. "Cubot, Orbot, get their weapons." With a touch of Eggman's wrist controller, the force‑field evaporates. The vixen and the hare land heavily on the floor, Cubot and Orbot stripping them of their weapons before they can recover.

"I'd give them back if I were you," the vixen growls as she stands, claws extended.

"I can summon the force‑field again if you like," counters Eggman.

The vixen hesitates, then relents, retracting her claws.

"Good," Eggman smiles. "Now maybe we can talk. Ideally over a nice hot cup of cocoa."

"Fine," the vixen growls. "Just so long as I get marshmallows."


	8. An Unusual Alliance

"…and that's how we came to be here," the hare finishes a few minutes later.

"I think your cocoa's gone off," the vixen mutters. "Smells weird."

"Oh, that'll be the special ingredient," Eggman explains.

"Special ingredient?" The vixen takes a good sniff of her cocoa, recoiling as she picks up the odd scent. "Is that… garlic?" she asks, sniffing a second time.

"You're not the first fox to complain about that," Eggman grumbles.

"It's sacrilege!" the vixen continues. "Cocoa powder, hot milk, marshmallows. That's what goes into a hot chocolate. Nothing else. And _definitely_ not garlic."

"Not even whipped cream?" Eggman asks.

"…OK, I'll let you have that one," the vixen relents.

"What about hazelnut?" Eggman continues. "Almond? Coconut?"

"You can stop naming nuts now," the vixen growls.

"I've only named one," Eggman argues. "Almonds are seeds, and coconuts are fruit."

"I'm gonna go make a fresh cocoa," the vixen declares, leaving the room before either Eggman or the hare can stop her. " _Without_ garlic!" she adds as the door closes behind her.

"Orbot, show her where the kitchen is," Eggman sighs.

"As you wish sir," Orbot agrees. "Miss, allow me to assist you," he calls down the corridor as he follows the vixen.

"Will she be OK?" Eggman asks the hare.

"Yeah," the hare answers. "As soon as she's made herself a fresh cocoa, she'll be happy."

Silence descends as the doctor and the hare sip their drinks.

"Y'know, you two aren't the only new arrivals," Eggman informs after a couple of minutes.

"Hmm?" the hare asks.

"Yesterday, Sonic and his cohorts befriended a trio of nauseatingly charming young girls," Eggman explains. "One of them was a green cat who wears a scarf not entirely unlike yours."

"Three girls, one a green cat wearing a‑ oh, that'll be Team Lilac then," the hare informs.

"Team Lilac are here too?" the vixen spits as she re‑enters the room, a steaming hot fresh cocoa in her hands. "Forgive me if I don't throw a party," she adds sarcastically. "They here to get in our way again?"

"Given they arrived before us, I highly doubt it," the hare assures.

"You never know with those three," the vixen mumbles, sitting on the sofa.

"You know them already?" Eggman asks.

"Well, they did save our planet not long ago," the hare explains. "Hard _not_ to be known when you do something like that."

"Glory‑hounds," the vixen growls.

"And two of them are former Scarves," the hare continues, ignoring the vixen's interruption.

"Former scarves?" Eggman inquires, a little confused.

"The Red Scarves, a ninja clan," the hare explains. "We're both veteran members."

"Ah, that would explain your neckwear and weapons," Eggman realises. "At least your scarves are more stylish than that stupid brown thing Sonic wears all the time."

"Mine matches my hair," the vixen remarks absently, sipping her cocoa.

"Ninjas, hmm?" Eggman pauses a few moments, deep in thought. "Your services wouldn't be for hire, would they?"

"Depends on the payment terms," the hare confirms.

"For what I have in mind, I'm willing to be _very_ generous," Eggman explains.

The vixen's ears prick at Eggman's words. "You have our attention."

"I want to talk to one of… Team Lilac, was it? I want to talk to the hound, find out how she manipulates energy so easily. I'm hoping I can harness it to make a weapon to defeat Sonic once and for all!"

"And where do we come in?" the vixen asks.

"You'll kidnap her for me," Eggman states.

"OK," the vixen agrees.

"Hold on a moment," the hare cautions. "Are you sure about this?"

"The chance to get one up on a 'saviour of Avalice'? Try and stop me!" the vixen answers defiantly.

The hare pauses for thought. "OK," he agrees, turning back to Eggman. "On two conditions: Milla is not to be harmed, and she is to be released when you've finished your research."

"I promise," Eggman agrees. _Not that you'll be able to do anything about it if I break that promise._

"OK then," the hare smiles, extending a hand. "All that's left is remuneration. But we can discuss that later."

"Of course," Eggman agrees, shaking the hare's hand. "Oh, how silly of me!" he adds a moment later. "I never introduced myself! I'm Dr Eggman."

"Rob Stiil," the hare replies.

"Hanna Skarlett," the vixen adds.


	9. Courageous Caution

Later that morning, Hanna and Rob stealthily approach the beach. From the cover of the foliage, they observe Team Sonic (sans Sticks) and Team Lilac hanging out: Lilac and Carol are playing volleyball against Amy and Knuckles, Sonic is relaxing on a deck chair, and Tails is helping Milla build ever more impressive sandcastles.

"Two of us, seven of them," Hanna observes. "Normally, I'd be happy with those odds, but…"

"Cold feet?" Rob teases.

"Or for once I'm not charging headlong into battle," Hanna retorts, jabbing her elbow into Rob's ribcage. "Three of them defeated an interplanetary warlord and his army, and we have no idea what the others are capable of."

"What's with the new cautious you?" Rob asks.

"Nearly dying of thirst and nearly being blown up in space not enough for me to re‑evaluate some of my life decisions?" Hanna challenges.

"A fair point," Rob concedes.

"Plus, there's also the fact I have family to return to."

"Another fair point."

"So, for once, I'm going to be cautious about this."

"Like you were when you touched that portal?"

"I‑" Hanna pauses, unable to counter that argument. "Fair point," she concedes with a slight growl.

"Of course, we do have a robot army behind us," Rob reminds.

"Send in the cannon‑fodder, see what happens?" Hanna asks.

"Well, you're too scared to charge in yourself, so why not?" Rob teases.

Hanna responds by shoving Rob off his feet.

"OK, I asked for that," Rob smiles as he picks himself up.

"Just send in the robots," Hanna sighs. Despite her curt tone, there's the slightest hint of an amused smile.

Rob takes out a small remote control from his pocket, pointing it towards the beach and pressing the only button.

The robots swarm around the Scarves, heading straight for the beach.

* * *

Carol's ears prick at the sound of something approaching: it's a familiar sound, one she last heard on the riverbank shortly before being transported to this world. While she's distracted, the volleyball hits her on the head: the surprise causes her to stumble and fall on her tail.

"Hey!" the wildcat exclaims, sitting up.

"Sorry," Knuckles replies. "You OK?"

"Yeah," Carol assures, getting back on her feet. "I just thought I heard‑"

Suddenly, a dozen each of Motobugs and Crab Bots bursts out of the treeline, followed closely by a swarm of a dozen Bee Bots: the robots split into attack squads and attempt to outflank.

Sonic is the first to react. Leaping off his deck chair, he curls into a ball and fires himself at the robots, destroying several in quick succession with long looping bounces. Knuckles is next to act: with a loud grunt, he slams his fist into the ground, sending out a shockwave that stuns a charging wave of Crab Bots. Amy is third into the fray: producing an oversized pink and yellow hammer seemingly from nowhere, she hops, skips, and flips from robot to robot, smashing each one's casing open with brutal yet elegant swings of her hammer. Tails may be slower to react, but he's no less able than his friends: spinning his tails, he takes off and throws himself into the swarm of Bee Bots, using his plastic spade as an improvised club.

Lilac is up next, electing to assist Tails by Dragon Boosting through the swarm of Bee Bots: she follows with a dive‑kick into some Motobugs before Cycloning through the Bee Bots again. Carol dives into the brawl alongside Knuckles and Amy: she fights fast and efficient, leaving behind a trail of broken machinery. And Milla summons a Phantom Block and uses it to unleash a Super Shield Burst, taking out three robots at once. Without a second's pause, she unleashes more Bursts at anything that gets close.

The whole battle takes less than thirty seconds. As the last of the debris rains down, the members of Team Sonic and Team Lilac congratulate each other on their combined victory.

* * *

Hanna and Rob stare dumbfounded as the battle unfolds. Once it's over, they retreat deeper into hiding, and give themselves a few moments to make sense of what they just witnessed.

"You were right to be cautions," Rob eventually admits. "Three dozen robots in thirty seconds…"

"We need to rethink our strategy," Hanna concludes.

"Separate Milla from the others, then kidnap her."

"Exactly."

"How are we going to do that?" Rob asks.

"No idea," Hanna sighs. "Come on, let's get out of here before they come looking for us."

Swiftly and silently, the two Scarves sneak away, returning to their borrowed Eggmobile.

"There's two things confusing me," Hanna states as they take off.

"Hm?"

"Where on Avalice did the pink one get that hammer from? And why aren't the guys wearing pants?"

* * *

"That was so cool!" Carol exclaims.

"You guys kick some serious tail!" Lilac adds.

"But I didn't kick any tails," Knuckles counters, a little confused.

"She meant we smash robots really well," Amy explains.

"Yeah we do!" Knuckles replies, raising his hand in anticipation of a high‑five: no‑one responds.

"Someone give him five so we can continue," Amy sighs, but no‑one volunteers. "Fine," Amy sighs in resignation, raising a hand that Knuckles happily fives.

"Uh, guys?" Tails interrupts. "Where's Eggman? He normally shows up after we smash his robots so he can vow to defeat us next time."

"Yeah, what's up with that?" Knuckles asks.

"I don't know, but it smells fishy," Sonic answers. "I'm gonna go see what he's up to." He speeds away before anyone can argue.

A moment later, a fishbowl slides to a halt beside the group. The fish inside pokes his head out, sighs, and asks "Did I miss my cue?"


	10. Fire and Metal

Minutes later, outside Eggman's lair, Sonic finds the doctor in his meditation garden, working on a half‑scale ice sculpture of himself.

"Defeated my robots already?" Eggman asks as Sonic slides to halt beside him. "Thought it would have taken you at least another minute or two."

"We got some friends from out of town visiting, and they helped us," Sonic explains. "Why weren't you there to vow to beat us next time?"

"I decided to take up ice sculpting," Eggman informs. "What do you think?"

Sonic takes a moment to analyse the ice sculpture. "Not bad. Good, in fact. Not crazy about the subject matter, but you got good technique."

"I know, right? You should think about trying it yourself: it's fun!"

"Nah: art's more Amy's thing anyway."

"Speaking of your annoying friends, where are they?"

"Cleaning up the robots."

"I assume they're going to recycle them properly?"

"Why do you care?"

"Just because I want to conquer the planet, doesn't mean I don't care about the environment."

"I thought you wanted to turn the whole place into a giant theme park?"

"The theme park will have a petting zoo," Eggman informs. "Can't have a theme park without a petting zoo. Y'know, for the kids. Plus, I'll need somewhere to grow food."

"Oh." Sonic pauses for a moment's awkward silence. "Well, I better get back home. Catch you later, Egghead!" Sonic speeds off before Eggman can react.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, the Eggmobile lands at the edge of the meditation garden, Hanna leaping out of the craft as soon as Rob sets it down.

"Next time, _I_ fly the darn ball thing," she declares.

"There's nothing wrong with my flying," Rob counters as he dismounts.

"You nearly crashed into Mt Safety," Hanna reminds.

"If you hadn't leaned across me to fiddle with the radio, I could've kept it straight."

"Radio was useless anyway: couldn't pick up a single station."

"You didn't give it much chance to tune properly."

"So, how long have you two been married?" Eggman interrupts.

"We're not married yet," Hanna corrects.

"But we have been together for, what, nearly four years now?" Rob adds.

Hanna nods, adding "Living together for nearly two."

"It was a rhetorical question," Eggman sighs. "And you could have brought at least _one_ robot back. Do you know how expensive robot parts are?"

"Who said we lost all the robots?" Hanna counters.

"Sonic did," Eggman explains. "He felt the need to rub their victory in my face while interrupting my ice sculpting."

Hanna fixes Eggman with a look of disbelief and total lack of humour. "You're kidding, right?"

"I'm kidding wrong!" Eggman replies.

"No‑one's _that_ fast," Hanna retorts defiantly. "Not even Miss Goody Blue‑Boots."

"Answer this: given Tails has two tails, and Knuckles has spiked knuckles, why do you think Sonic is known as Sonic?"

Hanna makes to answer, but stops herself when she realises the logic is inescapable. "Point," she concedes.

"That further complicates our strategy," Rob observes.

"If we can separate them, we can take them, no problem," Hanna concludes.

"If my robots can't beat them, what makes you think you can?" Eggman asks.

"Wanna see what I'm made of?" Hanna boasts. "Set thirty of your robots on me. Actually, make it forty."

"Forty?" Eggman checks.

"Fine. Fifty."

"If you insist." Eggman shrugs as he summons the requested fifty robots, a roughly even mix of Crab Bots, Motobugs and Bee Bots. As they arrive, Hanna moves towards the cliff edge, purposefully allowing herself to be cornered.

"You sure about this?" Eggman asks

"Stop yappin' and get attackin'!" Hanna demands, twirling her nunchaku in anticipation.

Eggman looks over to Rob, who simply shrugs. "Fair enough. Robots: _attack!_ "

All fifty robots home in on Hanna.

Grinning in anticipation, the vixen counter‑charges. For a full minute, she simply dances around the robots' attacks, refusing to land a single blow: despite the robots' persistence, not one disturbs a single strand of fur on the vixen.

Suddenly, Hanna goes on the offensive. In a whirlwind of black and flaming orange, she dispatches every single robot with brutal efficiency. It takes her just forty‑five seconds to reduce the lot to scrap metal: once done, she stands calmly, surrounded by broken automata, panting slightly.

"You done showing off?" Rob teases.

"Hey, gotta maintain this figure somehow!" Hanna flirts back. "That was a fun workout: think I'll go have a shower." Hanna returns her nunchaku to her waist as she strides purposefully into the fortress.

"Remind me not to get on her bad side," Eggman comments to himself.

"You gonna do anything with this scrap?" Rob asks.

"Huh? Oh, no, do what you like with it," Eggman answers absently as he makes his way indoors. "Orbot, Cubot, give Rob a hand," he adds as he passes his lackeys at the door. With an affirmation, they obediently head to assist the hare, Cubot removing a hand and giving it to Rob.

* * *

Once the scrap is collected, Rob finds a suitable room to turn into a makeshift workshop. Once settled in, Orbot and Cubot leave Rob to sort through the scrap. As he separates it into a series of piles based on material and function, he notices an inactive battle‑scarred cobalt blue bipedal robot sat in a corner. "Hmm, what do we have here?"

"Cute, isn't he?" Hanna replies, poking her head out from behind the robot.

"Cute?" Rob questions. "He looks like a killing machine. I thought you were showering?"

"I did. Then I had a wander and found this guy. I've been trying to start him up, but it seems his battery is flat or something."

Rob looks around at the collected scrap. "I got some power supplies here. I could probably rig up a basic charger."

"Good. I want to see this thing in action!"

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Metal Sonic lies broken on the floor.

"He may look cool, but he's not very good," Rob observes, sheathing his sai.

"I'm surprised it took you over a minute to beat him," Hanna teases.

"I was going easy on him," Rob counters.

The Scarves stand a while, watching the last of the smoke escaping the robot's chassis.

"We should abandon the idea of using the fat man's tin cans," Hanna decides.

"Agreed."

"There is something that puzzles me though."

"Hm?"

"Given Eggman's clear dislike of Sonic, why did he build a robot facsimile?"


	11. The Problem with Portals

After lunch, with Team Lilac spending time with Amy, and Sonic and Knuckles off on yet another of their crazy adventures, Tails finds himself alone in his workshop, with just his plane and his inventions. Right now, he is engrossed in further analysing the data he gathered on Milla, so much so that he doesn't notice someone enter the workshop behind him.

Well, he wouldn't have if said interloper wasn't Sticks screaming ten types of crazy.

The surprise causes Tails to literally jump out of his chair, landing heavily right behind it.

"Sticks, calm down!" Tails commands as he picks himself up off the floor.

"How can I calm down?" Sticks cries. "There's Genesis Portals appearing _everywhere!_ "

 _Oh great, this again._ "Genesis Portals?"

"Remember when I told you about all those crazy worlds? And the time‑travel wibbly‑wobbly?"

"Uh‑huh," Tails yawns.

"Well, I saw several in the woods, and robots came out of them! And not like Eggman's robots!"

"Well, that's nice," Tails replies dismissively. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

"But I'm serious!"

"Yeah, OK, you're serious. Can I get back to work now?"

"Fine! If that's how you're gonna be!" Sticks snaps in a huff. "I'll be back!"

Sticks storms out of the workshop, growling and muttering to herself about how she's going to show Tails she's not crazy, and aliens really are trying to invade. Tails watches her go: once she's out the door, he sighs, rolls his eyes, then gets back to work.

Seconds later, a pile of robotic detritus is dumped on his lap.

"Crazy, am I?" Sticks declares defiantly.

"Yes, you are," Tails replies impatiently. "This is just scrap from this morning's fight."

"Look closer," Sticks implores.

"Fine," Tails sighs, picking up one of the larger pieces. As he turns it in his hands, he realises that it's technology like he's never seen before. Soon, he's dashing around his workshop, assembling a whole array of sensomatrons and measurmajigs. One by one, he uses the devices to analyse the debris Sticks dumped on him.

"This is tech like I've never seen before!" Tails exclaims excitedly.

"Told you!" Sticks replies smugly.

"Yeah, yeah, you were right, I was wrong," Tails admits. "Where did you find this stuff?"

"Right over‑"

* * *

"‑here!" Sticks replies.

"Did you really have to stretch that three‑word sentence over half an hour?" Tails asks.

"Yes."

 _Ugh._ "So, where's this portal thing then?"

As if on cue, a ring of purple fire and electricity containing a maelstrom of colour appears right in front of the kitsune.

Tails staggers back in surprise. "Is this one of those Genesis Portals?"

"And you didn't believe me when I said these things exist," Sticks confirms smugly.

"Do you think this is how Lilac and her friends got here?"

"How should I know?" Sticks replies. "You're the one with the sciencemotrons!"

"Sensomatrons," Tails corrects. "And it's a good thing I brought my pocket multi‑sensomatron with me!"

Tails gets out the device, and begins to take some readings from the portal, as well as a couple of photos.

After about five minutes, the portal disappears as inexplicably as it appeared.

"Oh." Tails pauses a moment to try to make sense of what he just saw. "I'm gonna need to go back to the workshop and analyse this data."

* * *

Back at the workshop, Tails is once again engrossed in data analysis: this time, it's the data he gathered on the Genesis Portal before it vanished. When the initial analysis is finished, Tails reviews the results. "But that can't be right…" Tails runs the analysis again: he gets the same results. A third time: same again. "Well, isn't that something…"

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Tails is going over the photos and results with Carol, who was glad for the opportunity to get away from the impromptu fashion show Amy had started with Lilac and Milla.

"That's exactly like the portal we came through to get here," the wildcat confirms.

"We need to find more portals," Tails decides.

"Mind if I come with?"

"Why not? Also, why?"

"The others are trying on dresses," Carol explains, putting on a look of derision.

* * *

Over the next few hours, Tails and Carol find and gather data on a further seven Genesis Portals, then return to the workshop to analyse it all.

"Uh‑oh," Tails mutters when the analysis is complete.

"Something wrong?" Carol asks, concerned.

"It seems something really bad happened some time ago," Tails explains. "An event so powerful and catastrophic, it rewrote the entire history of at least one dimension, probably several. It's hard to pinpoint exactly, but there was a massive surge of energy, a type I've never seen before, that was being used to repair a damaged universe. But the process was interrupted, and the fallout tore into the very fabric of space and time. Since then, random interdimensional portals have been appearing between many parallel dimensions. Some of them even cross time periods."

"Is it really that bad?" Carol asks. "I mean, this dimension's pretty nice, and mine is super‑cool."

"But what if there's a dimension full of evil and monsters?"

"We could recommend it to Brevon for his holidays!" Carol quips.

"He could go with Eggman!" Tails replies, he and Carol sharing a good laugh.

"Why are you laughing?" Sticks demands.

Tails jumps in surprise again, and Carol spins round into a combat crouch.

"Oh, it's just the crazy girl that thinks we're invading aliens," Carol realises, standing down.

"I'm on to you and your friends!" Sticks declares, locking eyes with Carol. "And don't think I don't know about the two flying around in Eggman's floaty ball thing!"

"I have no idea who you're talking about," Carol sighs. "But that raises the question of who they are…"

"Is that a problem?" Tails asks.

"Only if Red Scarves start turning up," Carol answers. "They're a guild of thieves and assassins. You don't wanna mess with them: they're dangerous."

"Aha! So, you admit it!" Sticks accuses.

"Admit what?" Carol asks.

"That you're here to invade!"

"No, we're not. We didn't even know this world existed until yesterday."

"You can't fool me! You're one of _them!_ "

Carol is about to respond when she realises what Sticks is talking about: her red scarf. "Oh, this thing? OK, I admit, I used to be a member. Lilac too. But we left the Scarves ages ago. We even saved our whole planet! The Scarves would _never_ do that!"

"Sticks, Carol and her friends have been here for nearly two days now, and nothing bad has happened," Tails explains. "So, can you please stop treating them like the enemy?"

"Fine!" Sticks relents after a moment's consideration. "But one day, BAM! We'll find our grilled cheese replaced with carpet tiles! And I'll say 'I told you so!' And then‑"

"Sticks! That's enough!" Amy commands as she enters the workshop, Lilac and Milla right behind her. "Lilac, Carol, and Milla are our friends! And how do we treat friends?"

"With dignity and respect," Sticks sighs in resignation.

"Exactly!" Amy confirms. "Now apologise to them."

"Sorry I thought you were invading aliens who want to enslave us and force us to build giant mud sculptures of fruit baskets," Sticks shyly directs to Lilac, Carol, and Milla, who exchange looks of confusion.

"Don't worry about it," Lilac assures Sticks. "I've been accused of worse."

"Like what?" Amy asks, intrigued.

"Apparently not wanting to kill people makes us traitors or something," Carol explains. "To certain members of the Red Scarves, anyway."

"The 'Red Scarves'?" Amy inquires.

"A guild of thieves and assassins," Lilac explains. "We used to be members until we found out about the 'assassins' part."

"Oh, is that where you got that cute scarf?" Amy asks Carol.

"Yeah," Carol answers. "It's the symbol of the guild: all the members wear a red scarf."

"Why do you still wear yours then?" Tails asks.

"Dunno really," Carol replies. "I guess as a reminder not to repeat the mistakes we made back then."

"A noble reason," Amy compliments.

"So, what have you two been up to then?" Lilac asks Tails and Carol.

"We've been researching the Genesis Portals," Tails informs.

"Genesis Portals?" Lilac inquires, puzzled.

"We came through one yesterday," Carol explains.

"Huh." Lilac pauses for a moment. "Can we use them to get home?"

"Maybe," Tails replies. "I haven't worked that part out yet."

"Are you not having fun here?" Amy asks, concerned.

"Of course we are!" Lilac assures. "It's just we must return home eventually: people will be wondering where their heroes have gone if we don't. And if Brevon turns up again‑" Lilac reaches subconsciously for a hair whip "‑we'll need to be there to defend our home."

"In that case, let me set my computer to analyse the data we gathered in detail, see if we can learn what we need to open one of these portals ourselves to get you home," Tails assures, tapping away at the keyboard. A few moments later, he declares "There, that should do it! When it's done, I'll get an alert on my communicator."

Suddenly, a gentle growl permeates the workshop.

"That was me," Carol admits sheepishly. "I'm kinda hungry."

"Beach barbecue?" Amy suggests; everyone agrees enthusiastically. "Great! I'll let Sonic and Knuckles know while we set up!"


	12. Hero's Lament

After the barbecue, the gang settles down to watch the sun set in comfortable silence. As the last of the rays disappear over the horizon, Tails' communicator beeps an alert.

"Looks like the first results are in, and they're looking good!" he exclaims.

"So, we'll be able to return home?" Lilac asks.

"Yes, but it'll take a few days to build the machine required," Tails answers.

"That's cool," Lilac smiles. "To be honest, it's been good to get away for a while: being world‑famous is hard work."

"Not for me!" Sonic boasts.

"You don't have to put up with Mayor Zao endlessly trying to buddy up to you in a bid to secure his re‑election," Lilac states flatly.

"And then there's the endless stream of kids asking for autographs," Carol adds.

"I've lost count of the number of Phantom Blocks I've summoned because people don't believe it's possible," Milla sighs.

"You summon ghosts of blocks?" Knuckles asks, confused.

"No, that's just what we call them," Milla explains.

"Why?" Knuckles continues.

Milla thinks for a moment. "I don't know," she answers. "I've just never known another name for them."

"This may sound odd, but sometimes I wish we hadn't saved the world," Lilac continues, returning to the original subject. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad we did: it's just… I wish we were able to stay anonymous."

"If you want to, you can stay here," Amy offers.

"Thanks, but we can't," Lilac replies. "Avalice _is_ our home, after all."

"I understand," Amy assures.

A slightly awkward melancholy descends on the group, the only sound the gentle lapping of the water on the beach.

"Who wants to‑?" Amy begins. "Actually, never mind," she finishes.

"Never mind what?" Tails asks.

"Well," Amy resumes, "I was going to ask who wants to play Fuzzy Puppies‑"

" _I do!_ " Milla exclaims, sitting upright, her tail wagging furiously.

"I think I'll pass," Carol informs. "Not really into cutesy stuff."

"Sounds interesting, but maybe another time," Lilac decides.

"You sure?" Carol asks her. "Sounds like the sort of thing you'd like."

"Yeah," Lilac replies. "I was just thinking we've not done any training since we got here."

"You want to do some now?" Carol asks, interested.

"Yeah, why not?" Lilac smiles. "Is there a dojo nearby?" she asks the locals.

"What's a dojo?" Sonic asks.

"A place where you practice fighting skills," Lilac replies.

"We don't have anywhere like that here," Amy explains.

"Then how do you guys keep your skills sharp?" Lilac asks.

"Like I said when we first met, Eggman keeps sending robots after us," Sonic answers. "It happens often enough we don't need to practice."

"But that's not every day though, is it?" Lilac presses.

"Once or twice a week," Tails informs.

"You should really be training every day," Lilac advises. "You never know when Eggman will bring along something you cannot beat."

"Yeah, I don't see that happening," Sonic states confidently.

Lilac shrugs, not interested in debating any further. "Fair enough," she sighs.

"If you girls want to train, you can use my hangout," Knuckles offers.

"Thanks for the offer," Lilac agrees. "I'm up for that. Carol?"

"Sounds good to me," Carol answers.

With that sorted, Amy heads home with Milla bounding after her, and Lilac and Carol head to Knuckles' hangout to train a while. Tails returns to his workshop to tinker with some of his inventions, Sticks goes hunting for shiny things, and Sonic goes for a late‑evening run.

Little do they know they are being watched.

* * *

"And to think we were worried about Sonic and his playschool‑coloured friends," Hanna smiles confidently, keeping her voice to a soft whisper as she and Rob watch from high in the trees.

"To be fair, we didn't know the full extent of their abilities," Rob reminds. "Luckily, they aren't that extensive."

"Silly thing is, if they _did_ train properly, they _would_ be a worry for us," Hanna observes.

"Let's not worry about what‑ifs," Rob suggests. "We have a mission to complete."

"And with only pinkie in our way, it'll be easy," Hanna grins in anticipation.

* * *

At the stroke of midnight, with Amy and Milla fast asleep, the Scarves make their move.


	13. Mechanics and Mysteries

As dawn breaks over Bygone Island, Lilac and Carol return to find Tails up early in his workshop.

"Morning!" Tails greets as the girls enter the workshop. "How was training?"

"Fun but exhausting," Carol answers.

"At least we found a nice place to camp for the night," Lilac adds. "I think I'm starting to get used to a night sky without the Kingdom Vortex overhead."

"Hey, that's a cool name for it!" Carol exclaims. "We should suggest it when we get back home!"

"I'm surprised no‑one's thought of it before," Lilac muses.

"You know what makes it cool?" Carol asks rhetorically. "The 'X'! Everything cool has an 'X' in it!"

"My name doesn't have an 'X'. Does that mean I'm not cool?" Lilac teases.

"I didn't mean‑" Carol begins.

"I'm just messin' with ya!" Lilac grins.

Carol fixes her friend with an unamused look that lasts only a second before she's grinning too.

"Where did you camp?" Tails asks.

"We found a nice patch of woodland close to the Scrapyard," Lilac explains. "We fashioned a makeshift shelter out of leaves and sticks and stuff, and it worked pretty well. That is, until Carol knocked the central support away, bringing the whole thing down on top of us."

"You promised you wouldn't tell!" Carol pouts humorously.

"You did a good job rebuilding it though," Lilac assures; Carol's smile returns.

"On that note, how good are you at building things?" Tails asks.

"Depends on what we're building," Lilac answers. "If you want a new dining room table and chair set, I can make one no problem. But if you're looking for a mechanic, Carol's your wildcat."

"OK, let's see how good you are." Tails leads Carol over to a compact V4 gasoline engine that's clearly seen better days. "This used to power the fan on my hovercraft, but it packed up ages ago, and I've not got around to fixing it yet. Want to have a go?"

"Sure!" Carol agrees. "Was it making any funny noises before it failed? Putting out black smoke? Or maybe blue smoke?"

"No," Tails answers. "It just stopped."

"Right, well, I have a few ideas of what it could be," Carol muses to herself. "Give me… hmm… about an hour."

"Can do," Tails agrees. "There's plenty of tools around: should be everything you need."

"We'll return with breakfast," Lilac adds.

* * *

An hour later, Tails and Lilac return to find a somewhat oily Carol still working on the engine.

"How's it going?" Tails asks.

"Hm?" Carol replies, a little distracted. "Oh, hi," she adds a moment later. "Wasn't too hard to get it working: regapped the plugs, cleaned the corrosion from the HT contacts, spliced the broken HT lead, resealed the distributor cap, and flushed the carb. Could still do with some work, but it'll run well enough."

"You've certainly been busy!" Tails observes. "Wanna fire it up?"

"Sure," Carol agrees, securing the last bolt holding the carburettor in place. After quickly hooking up a small fuel tank, she tries to start the engine, but it doesn't fire. "Huh… musta missed something…"

"Did you turn the fuel pump on?" Lilac asks.

"Of course I did!" Carol smiles, though a quiet click reveals she hadn't. "I just need to prime the carb, that's all," she adds, using a pipette to place a few drops of gasoline inside the carburettor. "OK, let's try again."

The engine bursts into life almost immediately, quickly settling into a smooth hum. As Carol plays with the throttle, the engine revs freely from a low hum through a potent growl to a vivid bark. After several seconds, Carol returns the engine to idle and turns off the fuel pump: the engine stops just as smooth as it started.

"Nice work!" Tails compliments. "Sounds beautiful!"

"It could run better with a few tweaks," Carol replies. "The ignition timing on cylinder two is a little off, stiffer valve springs and lighter valves would allow for a cleaner, more efficient burn, and this carb is too big: you'd be better off with two smaller carbs, one on each bank."

"If we're changing the carbs, we should polish the inlets and exhausts as well," Tails adds. "And if the head's strong enough, we could also add a turbo!"

"Not too big," Carol cautions. "Don't want lag."

"Obviously," Tails agrees. "I was thinking a small one on each bank.

"Would go better with the two smaller carbs."

"Best make them variable geometry turbos: better responsiveness and smoother power delivery."

"And not forgetting an intercooler for a denser charge."

"I take it you two don't want breakfast then?" Lilac teases.

"Oh! Yes! Food! Good idea!" Carol replies, grabbing a clean rag and wiping the oil from her hands.

The trio settles down to breakfast. About halfway through, Sonic enters the workshop.

"Hey guys!" he greets. "Anyone seen Amy this morning?"

Tails, Lilac, and Carol reply with a variety of negatives.

"We've mostly been busy fixing an engine," Tails explains. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason, no reason at all," Sonic answers hastily. "Definitely not because I was going to invite her to a private breakfast on the beach," he adds with a nervous chuckle.

"Uh‑huh," Tails accepts, electing not to call Sonic's bluff. "I'm sure she'll show up eventually. You did check whether she was at home, right?"

"Hold that thought." Sonic dashes off at top speed, returning a few moments later. "She's not at home."

"Then she's probably out picking berries or something," Tails concludes.

"I guess" Sonic agrees. "I'm just surprised she left her hammer behind."

Tails stops eating. "But Amy _never_ leaves her hammer behind. Well, apart from that one time she was tricked into handing it to Eggman. And that time it got lost."

"True, but it's not like ninjas snuck into her house last night and kidnapped her," Sonic replies.

Lilac and Carol freeze suddenly.

"You don't think…" Carol begins.

"Sticks did see two people with red scarves flying Eggman's 'floaty‑ball'" Lilac remembers.

"There's that look again," Carol observes.

"Look?" Tails inquires.

"The 'Little Miss Heropants' look," Carol explains. "It means Lilac's about to run off and be a hero."

"And that you'll follow me," Lilac adds, already halfway to the door.

* * *

A few minutes later, Lilac arrives at Amy's house with Sonic right behind, Carol and Tails arriving seconds after.

"Locked," Lilac reports as she tries the door.

"Allow me," Carol volunteers, picking the lock open in seconds.

The gang enters the house to find it completely normal, except for the presence of Amy's hammer on one of the sofas, and a blanket and pillow on the other. After a brief but thorough search, neither Amy nor Milla can be found.

"I hate to be the one to say this, but it looks like Eggman has kidnapped both Amy and Milla," Tails concludes.

"You mean two Red Scarves kidnapped them for Eggman," Lilac corrects.

Suddenly, there's a thump from Amy's larder, followed swiftly by two more. Sonic opens the door to find Amy on the floor, bound and gagged with her own sports tape.

"Who did this to you?" Sonic asks as he swiftly frees Amy from her bonds.

"Four of you here, and not one of you thinks to check the larder?" Amy replies with annoyed disappointment. As soon as she is able, she storms out of the larder, pushing Sonic aside, and reclaims her hammer. "I didn't get much of a good look at them," she continues as she quickly inspects her hammer for damage. "All I know is she's a red‑headed vixen and he's a silver hare."

"Hanna Skarlett and Rob Stiil," Lilac and Carol chorus.

"I'm surprised he agreed to it," Lilac adds.

"I'm not surprised she did," Carol spits.

"You know them?" Amy asks gruffly.

"They're veteran Scarves, two of the best," Lilac explains. "They must have found a Genesis Portal: Hanna wouldn't have been able to resist jumping through it, and Rob wouldn't have been able to stop her."

"And it spat them out in Eggman's fortress," Tails guesses.

"Eggman must want Milla for something," Carol theorises.

"And I think we both know what it is," Lilac concludes. "The very same thing Tails was interested in: her unusual powers."

"Do you think Milla's going to be alright?" Carol asks.

"Rob will have made Eggman promise not to harm her," Lilac informs.

"A promise he'll stick to," Amy assures.

"Eggman keep a promise? Hardly likely," Sonic comments dismissively.

"He kept that promise at Puppycon," Amy reminds.

"And even if he doesn't, Milla can defend herself," Lilac adds. "But it's how she'll fare against Hanna that concerns me."

"How come?" Sonic asks.

"Hanna is a vicious, cunning, and relentless natural fighter," Lilac explains. "She breezed through the initial training period a month quicker than most, and rose to the top tournament ranks in less than a year. By the time I joined, she'd already carved herself a fearsome reputation. If the stories are to be believed, she made her first kill aged just twelve. It's actually because of that reputation why she hates me so much. In my first tournament, she was the top seed, and I beat her in the second round on my way to the quarters. And not by a slim margin either: I _humiliated_ her. Looking back on it now, I feel rather ashamed."

"Don't be," Carol comforts. "She needed to be taken down a few pegs."

"Not that many though," Lilac sighs.

"Are we going to stand around moping, or are we going to scramble Eggman?" Amy challenges.

"That's a terrible pun," Carol sighs.


	14. Puppy in Peril

While Lilac and Tails fetch breakfast and Carol starts working on the engine, Rob is awake a little earlier than usual. Standing on the balcony of the makeshift guest room, wrapped only in a towel from the waist down, he watches the waves crashing against the rocks Eggman's fortress is built on.

Hanna wakes up a few moments later. Rolling over, she finds Rob's missing, but it doesn't take her long to spot the hare on the balcony. "Morning babe," she coos.

Rob doesn't respond.

"Something the matter?" Hanna asks, sliding out of bed, pulling the sheet with her and wrapping it around her like a robe.

"Hm? No, not really," Rob eventually replies as Hanna stands beside him. "Just feeling a little homesick, I guess. I think it's the lack of pink trees."

"But this is a whole new world to explore!" Hanna chimes. "A whole new set of adventures to have! We'd be crazy _not_ to take advantage of this opportunity!"

"While that is undoubtedly true, you must admit, you're feeling a little homesick too," Rob replies.

"Me?" Hanna starts defiantly. "Well… yeah, I guess. But only a little bit," she adds, holding up a hand with tip of thumb and forefinger a quarter‑inch apart.

"Really?" Rob smiles knowingly.

"…OK, this much," Hanna sighs, widening the gap between thumb and forefinger to the maximum. "Still, can't say we've not had fun here: after all, we did kidnap a hero of Avalice last night. I still say we should have kidnapped pinkie too."

"She wasn't part of the mission," Rob reminds.

"You never let me have any fun," Hanna teases; Rob can't hold back a little smile. "Y'know, Eggo will be busy with the brat for a while", Hanna continues a moment later. "I think we should make the most of our alone time," she adds with a smirk, wrapping her tail around Rob's waist. With a quick kiss of his cheek, she gently leads him back to bed.

* * *

In Eggman's lab, Milla slowly stirs awake. _Something doesn't smell right. It smells… nasty._ Milla opens her eyes, surprised to see walls of white and grey. Sitting up, she takes stock of her situation: she's trapped in a small cage with bars made of red energy. Gingerly, she reaches out to touch one of the bars, pulling her hand back with a small yelp when she receives a sudden electric shock.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Eggman advises as he enters the lab.

Milla instinctively raises a shield, peeking round the edge. "W‑What do you want with m‑me?" she asks, trying her hardest to keep her voice strong and level.

"I want to study you and find out how to copy your powers, so I can use them against Sonic and his rag‑tag bunch of do‑gooders," Eggman explains.

"I won't let you hurt my friends!" Milla states defiantly.

"Oh, I don't intend to harm them," Eggman assures. "I want to capture them and keep them locked up so I can gloat at them."

"That sounds mean," Milla comments, relaxing a little.

"I'm a villain," Eggman informs. "Being mean is part of the job description."

"But you don't want to hurt people?" Milla asks, a little confused.

"You can be mean to someone without hurting them," Eggman explains. "For instance, I'm being mean to you by keeping you locked up, but you're not hurt in any way."

Milla lowers her shield. "Are you going to take over the world?"

"Eventually," Eggman answers. "But first I want to build my theme park!"

"Theme park?" Milla asks excitedly, her eyes wide and her tail wagging. "Will there be rides?"

"Of course!" Eggman chuckles. "What sort of theme park doesn't have rides?"

"What about a petting zoo?"

"That too."

"And what about‑" Milla starts. _He's a baddie, Milla! Need to escape and find Lilac and Carol._ "How long are you going to keep me here?"

"Only until I've finished my research," Eggman explains. "After that, you may go free."

"That doesn't sound very evil," Milla comments.

"Of course, soon after I let you go, I'll recapture you when I capture your friends," Eggman continues.

"You won't win," Milla states plainly. "Baddies never do."

"You can't always believe what you see in the movies, kid," Eggman replies. "This is the real world."

"You still won't win."

"I'll be the judge of that. Anyway, you have more pressing matters to attend to."

"Do I?"

"Yes. In a moment, you'll find yourself in a room with only one exit. Between you and that exit is my robot army. Defeat them, and you will have earned your freedom."

"Wait‑"

Eggman doesn't wait. With a tap on his wrist controller, the floor under Milla disappears. The surprised puppy drops into a chute, sliding out at the end into a large room with a door at the far end. As promised, between her and the door is a horde of Motobugs, Crab Bots and Bee Bots.

And every single robot is looking directly at her.

"Hi…" Milla waves timidly, backing away from the robots. _At least they're not as scary as Brevon's robots…_

Eggman activates the tannoy: it squeals loudly for a moment before he silences it. "Sorry: got some unexpected feedback," he explains. "Robots: _attack!_ "

As the robots charge, Milla summons a Phantom Block, charges it up, and unleashes a powerful Super Shield Blast into the first wave: several robots are torn apart by the potent jade energy. Milla then counter‑charges the second wave, which she beats with a series of smaller Shield Blasts at point‑blank range.

Wave after wave of robots attack, but Milla rises to the challenge. With a mix of Phantom Blocks and Shield Blasts, she works her way closer to the door, leaving a trail of scrap metal in her wake. As she gets into the rhythm of battle, she gets quicker: Phantom Blocks give way to twin katana of pure jade energy, the pile of scrap metal growing seemingly endlessly.

Several minutes later, as the last broken Bee Bot crashes to the ground, Milla relaxes. "Can I… go now?" she asks, panting heavily.

Eggman looks up from the data scrolling past his eyes. "You got through them quicker than I thought," he comments to himself before opening the tannoy. "Yes, you can go now. After all, I did say if you were victorious, I'd release you."

"Thank you!" Milla chirps as she walks over to the door. Before she can open it however, a cage identical to the one she woke up in drops over her, trapping her again.

"Oops! Silly me, pressing that button!" Eggman chuckles over the tannoy.

"But you promised!" Milla pleads.

"I'm a villain," Eggman explains. "Villains break promises."

"Just wait till Lilac and Carol get here! They'll show you!" Milla shouts defiantly.

"Enough of this, I have work to do," Eggman comments before shutting off the tannoy and turning to his lackbots. "Orbot, Cubot, escort our sickeningly saccharine prisoner to her room."

"Aye‑aye sir!" Orbot and Cubot salute in response.

"Oh, and make sure her room has a sea view," Eggman adds casually. "And if Hanna and Rob ask, tell them we let her go, and she's on her way back to her friends."


	15. Run Milla, Run!

As Milla is escorted to her sea‑view prison cell, Eggman takes the data he's gathered down to the manufactory, and heads straight for his latest creation. Checking the construction progress, he smiles at the confirmation the slushie machine is fitted and operational. In fact, every system is functional save one: the main weapon.

Eggman inserts the compact storage device he's carrying into the console. For the next ten minutes, he toils away at the keyboard, processing the data and integrating it into the weapon's design. Once his work is complete, he goes over the diagnostics a few times to make sure everything's as it should be. Satisfied, he cues the test fire sequence.

On the far wall, a panel slides aside to reveal a stuffed replica of Sonic. Eggman aims the weapon directly at the plushie's head, and initiates the firing sequence. A moment later, the weapon finishes charging and… sparks harmlessly as the energy dissipates across the entire hanger.

"What the what?" Eggman turns back to the console, typing frantically to figure out what went wrong, pausing when he spots an anomaly in the data. "Hmm…"

* * *

While Eggman is in the manufactory, Rob, dressed in only a bathrobe, makes his way from the makeshift guest room to the laundry room to recover both his and Hanna's outfits. On his return, he spots Orbot and Cubot locking a room. Staying out of sight, he waits until the lackbots have departed. When the coast is clear, he sneaks up to the locked door and places an ear against it. Unfortunately, his hearing isn't quite good enough to figure out what's inside.

A familiar vulpine face appears in front of Rob as Hanna puts her ear against the door. "I got bored waiting," she offers as explanation.

"Can you hear anything?" Rob asks. "I can't."

"I hear Milla Basset escaping," Hanna answers. "She's out the room and on her way to freedom."

"So, the doctor broke his word," Rob sighs.

"Like we're super‑trustworthy," Hanna smirks.

"Point taken," Rob smiles back. "Still, not exactly pleased."

"Doesn't exactly fill me with joy either. Though probably for a different reason."

"I guess you're gonna want to recapture her?"

Hanna thinks for a moment. "Nah."

"I thought you liked getting one over on the 'saviours of Avalice'?"

"True, but Milla doesn't bother me that much: it's Lilac I really want to get the better of."

"Still?"

"What can I say? It's who I am."

"I wish you'd leave that silly rivalry behind."

"But you know I never will."

"I know." Rob moves away from the door. "No point hanging around spying on an empty room. Let's go get dressed, have breakfast, then figure out what to do with the rest of the day."

"I hear the climb up Mt Safety's pretty dangerous," Hanna smiles with anticipation as she follows Rob back to their room.

* * *

 _OK Milla, easy does it…_

While Hanna and Rob return to their room to prepare for the day, Milla begins her climb down the side of Eggman's island fortress. The climb is made trickier than expected by high winds blowing in over the sea, one such gust coming so suddenly it almost blows the puppy clean off the building. Luckily, Milla grabs a firm handhold before she loses her balance, and with the help of a little ear flapping, she recovers and continues her climb.

Five minutes later, about halfway down, Milla freezes when she sees Eggman through the window. Electing not to alert him to her presence, she shrinks back, hiding in the shadow of a ventilation outlet. Tense seconds pass as Eggman gets closer: Milla holds her breath, afraid to make even the smallest sound.

The next five seconds feel like an eternity to Milla: she breathes a huge sigh of relief when Eggman disappears down the corridor. Resuming her climb down, she fails to notice the compact spy drone tracking her.

* * *

Eggman's wrist controller beeps an alert: the doctor pauses to see what the fuss is about. _So, she escaped, huh?_

Eggman taps out a command.

* * *

Hanna and Rob jump at the sound of the klaxon, the vixen tripping over the boot that's half‑on and falling over, landing with a surprised yelp.

"What on Avalice?" Rob exclaims as he stoops to pick up his belt.

"Ten crystals Milla's been spotted," Hanna bets as she picks herself up.

* * *

The sudden blaring of the klaxons takes Milla even more by surprise: she loses her footing and falls from the ledge. Fluttering her ears like crazy, she just about makes it to another ledge two storeys down. Taking a moment to recover her composure, she inadvertently gives enough time for a half‑dozen Bee Bots to home in on her position.

"Time to be brave!" she encourages herself. Hastily, she resumes her descent, doing her best to avoid the Bee Bots' laser bolts. A few times, Milla is almost hit: however, she refuses to raise a shield, knowing that would only slow her down.

One storey from the ground, Milla makes one last leap. A Bee Bot bolt hits her left wrist, knocking Milla off‑balance. The puppy lands heavily, rolling several feet before coming to a halt. Without looking back, she springs to her feet and runs directly for the nearby Eggmobile. Once aboard, she raises a small shield with her right hand while frantically mashing buttons with her left.

Suddenly, the Eggmobile bursts into life. Milla clings on as the Eggmobile lurches skyward, wrestling with the controls until she's flying level. Now in control, she accelerates, attempting to outrun the pursuing Bee Bots.

* * *

Eggman growls with frustration and anger as he watches the video feed of Milla fleeing in his Eggmobile.

* * *

Hanna and Rob exit the base just after Milla takes off.

"Darn it!" Hanna exclaims.

"We weren't going to stop her anyway," Rob reminds.

"It's not that," Hanna replies. "She took our ride!"

"We'll find something else," Rob assures. "There's bound to be something we can ste‑ borrow."

"There better be," Hanna growls as she begins looking.

It doesn't take more than a few minutes for Hanna to spot something: the damaged orange bangle from Milla's left wrist, laying on the rock. Leaving Rob to find a vehicle, Hanna retrieves the bangle, only for it to be torn out of her hands by Eggman seconds later.

"Ah, exactly what I need to finish my superweapon!" he cackles as he returns to the lair.

Hanna simply watches him go, dumbfounded Eggman managed to sneak up on her in total silence.


	16. Friends Reunited

Some distance away, Tails pilots his plane over the island towards Eggman's lair. Carol is in the passenger seat, while Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks ride on the wings, holding firmly onto grabhandles. Meanwhile, Sonic and Lilac run through the jungle below as fast as and slightly ahead of the plane.

As they approach a clearing, the plane's scanners pick up an enemy craft approaching.

Tails activates his headset. "Blue Leader, this is Yellow Sky. Come in, Blue Leader."

"Spot something?" Sonic replies over the radio.

"Bogey, twelve o'clock!" Tails reports. "It's Eggman!"

"Ten‑four: keep us posted."

"Aye‑aye, Blue Leader!"

* * *

Milla checks behind her to find the Bee Bots that were chasing her have fallen too far back, and are returning to base. Breathing a sigh of relief, Milla slows to a more comfortable cruising speed. Settling into a gentle cruise, she spots a familiar yellow monoplane. "Yay! It's my friends!"

Scanning the console of the Eggmobile, Milla searches for the radio button. _There must be one somewhere: Torque used one when he landed us in Shang Mu. Is this it?_

Milla presses the button.

* * *

"Incoming!" Tails shouts, pitching the plane into a roll to avoid the flurry of laser fire.

"You OK buddy?" Sonic radios.

"We're under fire!" Tails replies.

"Tails!" Amy barks over the wind noise. "Return fire, force him to land!"

"Will do!" Tails agrees, accelerating and returning fire.

* * *

"Eeeek!"

Milla grabs the joystick in a panic as Tails returns fire: she pitches the Eggmobile into a steep dive, heading straight for the clearing.

* * *

"Nice work Tails!" Sonic compliments via his wrist communicator. "He's coming in for a landing!"

As the Eggmobile descends, Sonic and Lilac change course to intercept.

Lilac slows a little when she spots something unexpected. "That's not Eggman… that's…"

"Something wrong?" Sonic asks, slowing to keep pace with Lilac.

Lilac doesn't reply: she grabs Sonic's arm and yells " _Cease fire! Cease fire!_ " into the wrist communicator.

"Why?" Tails asks over the radio.

" _You're shooting at Milla!_ "

* * *

" _Milla's on that thing?_ " Carol yells in surprise.

Tails shuts off all weapons and pulls out of the pursuit. Once level, he answers "I'm sorry, I didn't know! I thought it was Eggman!"

* * *

Milla risks a look over her shoulder to see Tails pull up and fly level again. Breathing a sigh of relief, she looks ahead only to realise it's too late for her to pull out of the dive.

The Eggmobile slams hard into the ground, digging a fifty‑foot furrow as it ploughs to a halt, leaving an expanding dust cloud as it digs.

* * *

" _MILLA!_ " Lilac cries in anguish as she watches the Eggmobile crash‑land. Pushing herself to top speed, she pulls ahead of Sonic and heads straight for the crash site, sliding to a halt as the dust cloud envelops her. " _Milla?_ "

"Lilac?" a voice calls from the dust.

" _Milla!_ " Lilac exclaims with relief. "Are you OK?"

Lilac is suddenly slammed to the ground. When she looks up, she sees the cute beaming face of the happy young puppy staring right back at her. "I am now!" Milla chirps.

* * *

Five minutes later, with the dust cloud having cleared and after Tails has landed his plane (and apologised at length to Milla for shooting at her), Milla regales her friends with her telling of her capture, challenge, and escape.

"Sounds like quite an adventure!" Carol smiles once Milla has finished.

"It was scary enough," Milla comments.

"What matters is you're safe now," Lilac adds. "Erm, where's your bracelet?" she asks a moment later.

"Huh?" Milla asks confused. "Oh!" she adds a moment later when she remembers. "It got blown off by a Bee Bot. Can we go get it back?"

"Of course," Lilac assures.

"Can we destroy Eggman's new superweapon too?"

"What the what?" Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks exclaim simultaneously.

"I guess that's a 'yes'," Lilac smiles in amusement. "How did you find out about that?"

"His funny‑looking robots kept talking about it when they took me to my cell," Milla explains.

"Something doesn't add up," Tails interrupts. "Why wasn't Milla being pursued?"

"Because I flew too fast?" Milla offers.

"That's not it: Bee Bots can easily keep up with the Eggmobile," Tails replies. "My analysis showed that, unless he has a way of focus‑ of course! Your bracelets! It's how you focus your powers!"

"Is it?" Milla asks, a little confused.

"Try and summon a Phantom Block," Tails requests.

"OK," Milla complies, raising her hands above her head. However, halfway through summoning the block, the energy dissipates with a crack. Milla shakes her left hand to drive away the numbness struck into it.

"Thought so," Tails muses. "The bracelets act as a sort of locus for your powers. Without them, the energy just discharges all over the place."

"So, if we don't get my bracelet back, I won't be able to summon Phantom Blocks anymore?" Milla asks, dabbing a tear from her eye.

"We'll get it back," Lilac assures.

"Yay!" Milla cheers, hugging Lilac.

"Carol, want to help repair the Eggmobile?" Tails asks.

"Sure, why not?" Carol casually agrees. "Also, why?"

"Because two aircraft are better than one," Tails explains.

* * *

Half an hour later, with the Eggmobile repaired, the whole gang sets off for Eggman's lair once more. Sonic and Lilac proceed on foot, Carol and Milla take the Eggmobile, and Amy, Sticks, and Knuckles ride with Tails.


	17. Eggman Advances

While Milla is being reunited with her friends, Eggman is in the manufactory once more. With the repair and fitting of Milla's bracelet almost complete, the doctor gets a fresh target ready for weapon testing. Moments later, the console beeps an alert informing him the work is complete. With a wicked grin of anticipation, Eggman starts the test sequence.

The weapon charges as it targets the plushie.

The weapon fires.

The brilliant jade pulse pierces a neat hole directly through the head of the plushie: milliseconds later, the remnants explosively burst into flame, revealing a neat hole in the wall behind. And the wall behind that. And the wall behind that. And the rock formation behind that.

"Maybe I shouldn't have turned it up to eleven…"

* * *

During the weapons test, Hanna and Rob are watching from the shadows of a stack of storage crates some distance away. When the superweapon fires, they both visibly recoil.

"He's going to use _that_ on those playschool‑coloured fools?" Hanna whispers in shock. "He'll _kill_ them!"

"We're not exactly free from blood on our hands," Rob reminds.

"Point," Hanna acknowledges. "But there's a difference between what we do and what he's planning to do."

"Point," Rob acknowledges. "But do we interfere?"

Hanna doesn't respond: instead, she shrinks further into the shadows to contemplate their options while Rob keeps watch on the villainous doctor.

* * *

Eggman taps away at the console, making one final series of checks, his grin growing as each green status indicator scrolls past. When the diagnostics are complete, the doctor wastes no time climbing aboard his newest creation. Once buckled in, he fires up the systems, and once everything is online, he opens a video feed from one of his spy bots. An image of a clearing appears: in its centre are Team Sonic and Team Lilac.

"Enjoy it while you can, rodents!" Eggman cackles. "Soon you will face your doom! Play my battle music!"

Smooth jazz fills the cockpit.

"I've really got to label my music correctly," he sighs as he pilots the tank out of the hangar.

* * *

"Eggo's on the move," Rob announces to Hanna.

"Then so are we!" Hanna declares.

The vixen jumps to her feet and sprints along the walkway, Rob right behind her. They turn sharply onto as spur walkway, dash the full length, and leap from the end, landing on the back of the tank.

"Now we're on here, what's the plan?" Rob yells over the noise of the tank's powerful engines.

"We disable that gun!" Hanna yells back.

"How?"

"Somehow!"

* * *

As Sonic and Lilac break out of the trees onto a wide beach, Lilac slides to a halt, Sonic halting twenty feet in front of her.

"What are you stopping for?" Sonic calls back. "Eggman's base is just across the water!"

"We should send Carol and Milla ahead to scout," Lilac explains.

Sonic dashes to Lilac. "If you can't swim, that's‑"

"I'm a water dragon," Lilac interrupts. "And sending Carol and Milla on reconnaissance means we'll be better prepared if we need to assault Eggman's fortress."

"Blue Leader, this is Yellow Sky. Why have you stopped?" Tails asks over the radio.

Lilac removes Sonic's communicator with one swift movement. "Tails, hold position. Carol, Milla, scout ahead, report back what you see. If you're attacked, fall back and radio Tails to cover you."

"Aye‑aye!" Carol replies.

"We should go ahead instead," Tails offers. "Strength in numbers."

"The Eggmobile is a smaller target, and Eggman won't want to damage his own property," Lilac explains.

"Good point," Amy interjects. "Tails, hold position. Carol, Milla, scout ahead."

"And radio silence except in an emergency," Lilac finishes, then hands the communicator back to Sonic. "Sorry: you can have it back now."

"Next time, just ask," Sonic replies flatly as he refits his communicator.

* * *

A few minutes later, Carol and Milla approach Eggman's fortress island. Carol hands Milla the controls, then does a handstand on the top of the windscreen to get a better view.

"Can you see anything?" Milla asks after a few moments have passed.

"No," Carol replies. "We may need to‑ wait, something's coming out of the base… something _big_ … with a… uh‑oh." Carol flips back to stand beside Milla. "Get us out of here," she commands as she picks up the radio.

* * *

"Hey, Miss Heropants!" Carol's voice bursts from Sonic's communicator. "Got some news for ya."

"Good or bad?" Sonic asks as Lilac listens in.

"Both," Carol explains. "The good news, Eggman's coming to meet us. The bad news, the gun on his tank looks like it'll give the Holodragon a run for its money."

"Holodragon?" Sonic asks.

"A robot that fires a searing energy beam up to ten feet wide," Lilac explains. "Fall back and regroup," she commands Carol. "We'll dig in here and prepare an ambush."

"Already on our way," Carol replies.

"Hey Tails," Sonic adds. "You still got that unbolteriser?"

"Fitted and ready to go!" Tails replies.

"Drop off the guys and find a place to hide," Sonic commands.

Moments later, Tails' plane hovers low over Sonic and Lilac. Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks drop beside the speedy duo, then Tails flies his plane to hover behind a convenient rock formation. A few minutes later, Carol and Milla return and hide behind a smaller rock formation as Sonic, Lilac, Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks conceal themselves in the treeline.

* * *

Inside the tank, Hanna and Rob put the finishing touches to their improvised re‑wiring job.

"There," Rob declares. "That should disable the main gun."

"Then let's get outta here," Hanna replies.

Opening the service hatch they entered through, Hanna and Rob climb out onto the hull. After sliding down to the rearmost section, they pick their moment and jump off. Just before they land on the beach, a Genesis Portal appears beneath them: seconds later, Hanna crash‑lands on their balcony at home in Rage Ravine, Rob landing on top of her.

With a pop, the portal disappears, the sound disguised by the long, pained groans of both vixen and hare.

"Well, that was random," Hanna sighs.

"At least we're home," Rob sighs in return.

"And our ATVs are in Shang Mu," Hanna reminds.

"We'll get them tomorrow," Rob decides. "I should probably get off you," he adds.

"Nah, it's fine," Hanna sighs. "It ain't gonna change the fact I'll be feeling that landing for the next few days."

"Me too," Rob replies.

"Plus, if anyone's allowed to lay on me, it's you," Hanna smiles.

A moment later, they hear another pop, looking up just in time to see a pair of white, navy, and aqua boots disappear through another Portal, which then disappears.

"Who was that?" Hanna asks.

"No idea," Rob answers. "But I get the feeling our homecoming wasn't random after all."

* * *

Back at the beach on Bygone Island, Eggman halts his tank in the centre of the beach, and activates the infra‑red scanner. "You cannot hide from me!" he cackles as he locates the two large heat signatures of Tails' plane and the Eggmobile, along with the five smaller signatures of those on the ground. "First, to get rid of the twin‑tailed brat." Eggman aims the main gun directly at Tails' plane, pushes the power to eleven, and pulls the trigger.

Nothing happens.

"What the what?" Eggman checks the main gun systems: they're all offline. "Orbot! Cubot! Get that gun operational!"

"Aye‑aye, sir!" Orbot replies as he and Cubot head below decks to repair the main gun.

* * *

"He's just sat there," Lilac observes.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Sonic asks, activating his communicator. "Let's roll!"


	18. Endgame

Sonic dashes from cover and halts in front of the tank. "It ends here, Eggbelly!" he shouts as Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks fall in behind him. "Return Milla's bracelet!" he commands.

"The only end here is yours, you interfering blue pineapple!" Eggman retorts over the tank's speakers. "Robots: _attack!_ "

The front of the tank opens, spewing forth a swarm of Crab Bots and Motobugs pour out as a cloud of Bee Bots emerges from the rear. The robot army immediately bears down on Sonic and his friends, who scatter and counter‑attack.

"Tails! Carol! A little help?" Sonic commands over his communicator.

"On it Blue Leader!" Tails replies.

"Aww yeah!" Carol responds.

Both the Eggmobile and the monoplane break from cover and counter‑attack the Bee Bots. As they engage, Lilac Dragon Boosts in to help on the ground.

For the next few minutes, the battle rages fierce. Sonic bounces from bot to bot, smashing each with his Spin Attack. Knuckles sends shockwave after shockwave through the attacking ranks. Amy uses her gymnastic abilities to their fullest, each swing of her hammer leaving a pile of mutilated wreckage. Trilling her battle‑cry, Sticks sends her boomerang repeatedly looping through the bots. Lilac dispatches the enemy with speed and precision. Tails cuts through the Bee Bots with sweeps of rapid fire. Carol unleashes pinpoint bursts of laser bolts. Milla uses her summoned jade katana to slice any bots that get too close.

Even with Eggman supporting his bots with laser fire from his tank's sponson turrets, the bots are no match for the multi‑coloured heroes. Slowly but surely, the pile of wreckage grows until eventually, the last bots are vanquished.

"Do you give up, Egghead?" Sonic asks as he lands next to the smoking carcass of the last bot.

"Never!" Eggman growls back. Revving the engine hard, he charges the tank at Sonic and his friends, who scatter to avoid being pancaked under the treads.

"Tails, unbolterise that thing!" Amy commands.

"Ten‑four!" Tails replies. Looping round over the sea, he begins his attack run. Activating the Unbolteriser, he waits for the target lock, firing when the target is locked.

The beam of amber energy flies straight and true, but it deflects off the tank's jade shield, striking the Eggmobile instead. The Eggmobile is instantly disassembled, dumping Carol and Milla into mid‑air.

"Uh‑oh," Tails as he turns to catch Carol and Milla. His help is not required though: Milla takes hold of Carol's hands and flaps her ears furiously. Their beach landing is hard, but they are unharmed. Immediately, they scatter to avoid Eggman's rampaging tank.

"That's not going to work this time!" Eggman gloats over the tank's speakers.

"That shield: it was just like Milla's!" Lilac observes.

"Tails, try again!" Sonic commands.

"There's no point!" Lilac shouts. "Nothing can get through that shield!"

"Then we do this the old‑fashioned way!" Amy commands. "Knuckles, take out the sponsons!"

"Will do!" Knuckles replies. "Er… what are 'sponsons'?" he asks a moment later.

"The guns on the sides!" Amy yells back as she moves in to destroy one of the sponsons.

"I knew that!" Knuckles pretends as he moves in to destroy the other sponson. With a flurry of powerful punches, the sponson is left broken and sparking, leaking oil. Amy's hammer makes similarly light work of the other sponson: their task complete, they fall back and prepare to attack again.

"Gah! Those interfering rodents!" Eggman growls inside his tank. "Orbot! Cubot! Is the turret fixed yet?"

"Aye sir!" Orbot replies over the internal radio.

"Excellent!" Eggman activates the backup weapon system and begins to charge the turret gun. "You haven't won yet!" he cackles over the tank's speakers.

"We'll see about that, Eggbrain!" Sonic retorts. "Tails, distract him while we move in close!" he commands over his communicator.

"Ten‑four, Blue Leader!" Tails replies as he begins his attack run: this time, the laser bolts hit the tank's hull.

"The shield is down!" Lilac exclaims.

"Unbolterise that thing!" Amy commands Tails.

Tails banks round to start another attack run and activates the Unbolteriser.

Eggman pivots the turret to track the monoplane.

Tails gets target lock.

Eggman fires the turret weapon.

The brilliant jade green beam flies directly at the monoplane. Tails pulls back on the controls as hard as he can, but it's too late: the beam severs the tail section from the plane. Fighting for control, Tails tumbles over the trees. Sonic watches in horror as the plane plummets into the foliage, the whole gang wincing collectively when they hear the explosion of the crash‑landing.

"No…" Sonic breathes in shock.

"Hahahahaha!" Eggman gloats over the tank's speakers. "There's nothing you can do to stop me this time!"

"You'll pay for that!" Carol growls as she charges the tank, Milla, Knuckles, Amy, and Sticks charging at the same time. Hatches open all around the tank, exposing compact cannons, each of which fires globs of sticky yellow goo. One by one, the heroes are hit, each finding themselves stuck fast, unable to move.

The cannons turn on Sonic. Lilac Dragon Boosts past him, grabbing his arm on the way: together, they dive into cover behind a large rock, just avoiding being hit by the yellow goo.

"There's no use hiding, Sonic!" Eggman boasts. "I know where you are, and when this gun is charged, it's bye‑bye for you _and_ your purple pal!"

"We've got one shot at this," Lilac informs. "When I say, we leap together, and you start spinning: I'll charge up a Dragon Boost."

"But Tails‑" Sonic starts.

"We either stop Eggman now, or not at all!" Lilac barks.

Sonic takes a moment to gather himself. "OK, let's roll!" he nods.

"On my count," Lilac instructs. "One… two… three!"

Sonic and Lilac leap hand‑in‑hand from behind the rock.

Eggman turns the turret on them.

Sonic starts to spin as Lilac charges a Dragon Boost. As the combined energies feed into each other, the duo spin in a tight ball faster than either has ever experienced before.

The turret weapon finishes charging.

Lilac unleashes the supercharged Dragon Boost.

The searing blue comet tears right through the length of the tank. Moments later, the hull is ripped apart by a ripple of explosions.

Their combined energies expended, Sonic and Lilac land heavily on the beach behind the tank, rolling a full twenty feet before flopping on their fronts, exhausted.

"That… was… intense," Sonic pants.

"We won… and that's… what counts," Lilac pants in return.

With one last series of explosions, the tank collapses into a pile of wreckage. The last of the yellow goo is sprayed over the beach, two large globs landing on Sonic and Lilac, pinning them down.

"Not that I… could get up anyway," Lilac sighs.

"Nor can Eggbelly," Sonic remarks, pointing with his eyes.

Lilac looks at what's left of the tank. Eggman is sat in the middle of the wreckage, coated in a thick layer of yellow goo. "Good. Someone will be along soon hopefully, then he can‑"

Lilac stops short when she sees Orbot and Cubot emerge from the wreckage. Together, they clear the debris from around Eggman's seat and engage the 'escape' function. The seat lifts into the air and turns to head back to Eggman's fortress, lackbots in tow.

"I'll be back! And next time, I'll have more yellow goo! And it'll be _twice_ as evil!" Eggman promises as he flies away.

"‑get away," Lilac sighs as she watches Eggman escape.

"He won't try that again" Sonic assures. "And if he does, Tails will‑ oh…"

"My deepest condolences," Lilac offers.

"It won't be the same without him," Sonic sighs.

"Without who?" a familiar voice asks.

Sonic looks up as the limping twin‑tailed kitsune sits himself between him and Lilac. "Tails!" he exclaims. "You're alive!"

"Of course I am!" Tails chuckles. "My plane however…" he adds sadly.

"We'll help you rebuild her," Sonic assures. "As soon as you free us from this goo."

"I have just the thing for that," Tails informs. "Unfortunately, it's back at the workshop," he adds with a sigh.

"Guess we'll be stuck here a while then," Lilac sighs. "At least it's warm, and this goo is actually quite comfortable."

"Oh, before I forget," Tails continues, revealing a battle‑scarred orange bracelet. "I found this: I think it's Milla's."

"My bracelet!" Milla exclaims with joy, pouncing on Tails and hugging him tightly. "Thank you for finding it for me!"

"My pleasure," Tails croaks, struggling a little to breathe as Milla's hug is so tight it's squeezing the air out of him.

Milla releases Tails. "Sorry," she blushes. "I'm just so happy you found it."

"It's fine," Tails assures, handing Milla her bracelet. "I'll repair it for you when we're back home."

"Milla, weren't you pinned by this goo?" Lilac asks.

"Yeah," Milla confirms. "I cut myself free though," she adds, summoning a jade katana in her right hand.

"Did you cut everyone else free?" Lilac continues.

Milla pauses a moment. "Um… I forgot," she blushes deeply.

Lilac tries to hold it in, but she can't: she bursts into laughter. Seconds later, Sonic, Tails, and Milla join in, relaxing as the tensions of battle bleed away.


	19. Epilogue: Homeward Bound

The following afternoon, Team Sonic and Team Lilac are relaxing in Tails' workshop, all exhausted after helping Tails rebuild his plane. All except Tails and Milla: he's putting the final few touches in place on his plane, and she's successfully summoning Phantom Blocks to test her repaired bracelet.

"There!" Tails announces as he finishes the last adjustment. "She's more beautiful than ever!" he adds as he jumps out of the cockpit and lands a short distance away, turning back to admire the plane.

"She's a fine machine alright," Carol agrees.

"Who wants to join me on a test flight?" Tails asks.

"Maybe later," Sonic replies.

"Suit yourself!" Tails retorts buoyantly as he jogs towards the plane. Not noticing the pop of an appearing Portal, he bumps into the silver hedgehog emerging from it, landing on his tails.

Everyone jumps from their chairs and readies for a fight. Milla falls in with the group, shield raised.

"Woah, relax guys!" the silver hedgehog requests, holding his hands up. "I'm not here to fight."

"Who are you?" Carol demands.

"My name is Silver," the newcomer explains. "I've been travelling through these Genesis Portals, closing them as I go, to control and eventually reverse the damage being done to all dimensions."

"Tails, does that make any sense to you?" Sonic asks.

"Actually, yes," Tails explains. "As I was explaining to Carol a couple of days ago, something happened that rewrote the history of an entire dimension, and probably several others. It was caused by a repair operation gone horribly wrong: these Genesis Portals are symptoms of the damage caused."

"Then why did you open a new portal just now?" Lilac asks Silver.

"Because I'm also helping people that have accidentally travelled between dimensions get home to their correct dimension," Silver explains. "Sash Lilac, Carol Tea, Milla Basset, this Portal will take you home to Dragon Valley."

"We're not the only ones here," Lilac informs.

"I returned the other two home yesterday," Silver informs.

"Good," Lilac nods in relief.

"Do we have to go now?" Milla asks, holding back a few tears.

"Unfortunately, yes," Silver informs. "The longer you stay outside your own dimension, the harder it is to control the damage. If the damage gets too severe, it could be irreversible. However, there is thankfully time enough for a proper goodbye."

The eight friends group into their teams and prepare to say goodbye.

"It's been quite an adventure," Lilac observes. "It's a shame we can't have a few more days."

"It was a pleasure fighting Eggman with you," Sonic returns, offering a hand which Lilac shakes firmly.

"We could have built some amazing machines together," Tails remarks to Carol.

"Hey, you don't need me to make cool stuff!" Carol winks, ready for a fist bump. Tails bumps fists, choosing not to remark on the single tear rolling down Carol's cheek.

"I guess this means no more 'Fuzzy Puppies'," Milla sniffs as she and Amy hug.

"We'll always be 'Fuzzy Puppy Buddies'," Amy replies.

Lilac looks over to Amy and Milla hugging. With a quick gesture, everyone joins in to make it a group hug.

"Well, guess there's nothing left but to return home," Lilac comments as the hug breaks. "We'll miss you guys!" she adds as she, Carol, and Milla move in front of the Portal.

"We'll miss you too!" Sonic, Tails, and Amy chorus in return.

"Oh, and one last thing," Lilac adds as Carol and Milla disappear through the Portal. "Sonic, lose the scarf: it looks silly," she teases, disappearing through the Portal before Sonic can react.

Once Silver has followed Lilac through, the Portal disappears with a pop. Team Sonic stand for a moment, sad to see their new friends go, not sure what to do next.

"Flying always cheers me up," Tails eventually says to no‑one in particular.

"That does sound nice," Sticks adds. "Plus, it's a good distraction from the spanners reading my thoughts."

"Can I come too?" Knuckles asks.

"Sure," Tails agrees. "Sonic, Amy?"

"Sounds like a‑," Sonic starts, pausing when he realises Amy is holding his hand. "On second thoughts, maybe later," he finishes.

Tails shakes his head in amusement as he gets into his plane. Moments later, he taxis out of the workshop and takes off, Knuckles and Sticks riding on the wings.

"It's just us two now," Sonic comments softly.

Amy hugs Sonic tightly, Sonic returning the hug tenderly.

"I miss them so much already," Amy sobs.

"I know," Sonic reassures. "But you never know, we may see them again someday."

"I hope so," Amy replies. "Lilac has a point," she adds a moment later.

"Hm?"

"Your scarf does look silly."

Sonic sighs, unamused.

* * *

After thanking to Silver, Team Lilac retire to the den in their treehouse.

"It's good to be home!" Carol chimes.

"Agreed," Lilac replies. "Being under the Kingdom Vortex again is a good feeling. Still, would have liked to stay a few days more."

"Me too," Carol agrees.

"Do you think we'll ever see them again?" Milla asks.

"I hope so," Lilac answers. "Sonic may be an arrogant, cocky, smug little… proverbial, but under that brash exterior, he's a real sweetheart."

"Sounds like someone has a little crush!" Carol teases.

"Oh, please!" Lilac scoffs humorously.

"You'd be so cute together though!" Milla adds cheekily.

"What am I going to do with you two?" Lilac sighs, smiling. "Besides, he's with Amy."

"Are you sure about that?" Carol asks.

"There's _something_ going on between them, that much is obvious," Lilac confirms. "Anyway, why aren't we talking about your little crush on Tails?" she teases.

"You better take that back, Miss Heropants!" Carol retorts humorously.

"Make me!" Lilac challenges, poking her tongue out playfully, Milla giggling at her friends' playful banter.

The phone rings, interrupting the trio. After a brief wordless exchange, Carol answers it. "It's Mayor Zao," she informs Lilac a few moments later. "He wants us in Shang Mu for a photo‑op tonight."

"Oh, for a Portal to Bygone Island," Lilac sighs as she flops face down on the sofa.


End file.
